INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
human rights violations, Amnesty International said in a new investigative report released on Wednesday (10).According to the rights group,
policing of 30 protests that took place in Sri Lanka between March 2022 and June 2023.Amnesty International said its research showed a
pattern in the unlawful use of tear gas and water cannon and the misuse of batons by Sri Lankan law enforcement officials with video
assuming that they would be unlawful and violent and that they would need to use force to repress them
The police failed to recognize that people have the right to peacefully protest, and that the authorities have a duty to facilitate and
South Asia.During 2022 and 2023, Sri Lankans called for accountability for the prolonged economic crisis, corruption and human rights
violations, in large-scale protests and an occupy movement known as the Aragalaya in Colombo and other cities across Sri Lanka
Amnesty International said it has documented unlawful use of force against largely peaceful protests that continue to date, including in
2024.Further, Amnesty International went on to allege that in the Northern and Eastern provinces of Sri Lanka, the security forces and
continued to take place since 2017 by the relatives of people forcibly disappeared during the internal armed conflict in Sri Lanka.During
its investigation, the rights group has conducted 39 qualitative interviews and an open-source investigation into 95 verified videos
gathered on social media of 30 protests, predominantly from Colombo, Battaramulla, Kelaniya, Jaffna and Galle
In March 2024, Amnesty International wrote to the Sri Lanka Police outlining the allegations in this report and requesting an official
response but had not received a reply at the time of publication.The organization accuses the Sri Lankan police of following a pattern of
using large quantities of tear gas against peaceful or largely peaceful protesters repeatedly in the same area without giving them an
adequate opportunity to disperse, and without making any reasonable effort to limit risk of injury.Amnesty International emphasized that the
videos it has verified also showed the combined use of water cannon and tear gas by police against largely peaceful protestors in 2023 in
Sri Lanka without giving them sufficient time and opportunity to disperse, in breach of international law and standards as well as best
This was reportedly documented in various protests and most prominently on the peaceful protest of 3 February 2023 in Colombo.The statement
published by Amnesty International also deplored the Sri Lankan police of firing tear gas grenades from behind the protesters while the
protesters were trying to disperse, which it said was a breach of international human rights standards
as near schools and on the street
This unnecessarily exposed children and bystanders to the effects of chemical irritants
also raised concerns about the failure to prosecute or convict any police officer or member of the army for the unlawful use of force during
of accountability exists within the context of a wider culture of impunity, where police and military personnel have rarely been held
International further highlighted that the Sri Lankan state is responsible under international law to investigate effectively, impartially,
and in a timely manner, any allegation or reasonable suspicion of human rights violations by law enforcement officials
brought to justice in fair trials before ordinary civilian courts
approach to policing of protests in Sri Lanka does not comply with international law and standards and restricts the right to freedom of
peaceful assembly in the country which is guaranteed under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Sri
The authorities must therefore urgently investigate all credible allegations of unlawful use of force by police during the 2022-23 protests
