Bijo Francis and Basil Fernando, Asian Human Rights Commisssion
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka has experienced high level of torture and disappearances over the last decades, both in the course of the armed conflict and daily law enforcement. The breakdown of the rule of law and impunity are at the heart of this systemic problem. REDRESS has been working with Sri Lankan lawyers and human rights defenders since the early 2000s to obtain justice for survivors and to hold the perpetrators accountable. We have provided training for lawyers and doctors on the Istanbul Protocol and have sought to develop the capacity of lawyers to engage in strategic litigation at the domestic and international level. Together with the Asian Human Rights Commission (http://www.ahrchk.net), we have brought and/or supported torture cases before domestic tribunals and the UN Human Rights Committee. These cases address the lack of investigations and prosecutions in torture cases, the bringing of fabricated charges against victims as well as harassment, intimidation and attacks on victims, families and witnesses. The cases of Gerard Perrera and Nishantha Fernando, both of whom were murdered for pursuing complaints, painfully illustrate this practice, which creates an atmosphere of fear that reinforces impunity and denial of justice.
Comments To The Committee Against Torture on Sri Lanka’s combined third and fourth periodic reports
- REDRESS submissions
- Joint REDRESS, ALRC, RCT and ACAT Alternative Report
September 2011
The need for a UN Commission of Inquiry on Accountability in Sri Lanka
- English
May 2011
Submission from AHRC, RCT and REDRESS to UN Panel on Sri Lanka
Joint submission of the Asian Human Rights Committee (AHRC), the REDRESS Trust, and the Rehabilitation and Research Centre for Torture Victims (RCT)
- English
December 2010
Memorandum on the compatibility of the practice of bringing fabricated charges, with international human rights standards, national jurisprudence and international standards on policing.
Published as appendix to 'Asian Human Rights Commission - Recovering the authority of public institutions - A resource book on law and human rights in Sri Lanka'
- English
February 2009
Effective remedies and protection for torture victims in Sri Lanka
An open letter to the Attorney General and the Inspector General of Police , Sri Lanka, following the killing of Mr. Nishantha Fernando
- English
October 2008
Accountability and justice for torture in Sri Lanka
An open letter to the Attorney General following the verdict of acquittal of the Negombo High Court in the case of Gerald Perera
- English
May 2008
WAITING FOR JUSTICE - The politics of Delay in the administration of Justice in Torture Cases: Practice, Standards and Responses
- English
May 2008
Comments To Sri Lanka's Second Periodic Report To The Committee Against Torture
- English
October 2005
Istanbul Protocol for Lawyers Sri Lanka
- English
January 2004
Reparation for Torture: A Survey of Law and Practice in 30 Selected Countries (Sri Lanka Country Report)
- English
May 2003
Responses to Human Rights Violations The Implementation of the Right to Reparation for Torture in India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka
- English
February 2003
