FR petition filed against illegal arrest, detention of Tamils

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 05 December 2007, 13:30 GMT]
The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) based in Colombo Tuesday filed a Fundamental Rights Violation petition in the Sri Lanka's Supreme Court seeking to prevent Tamil citizens being arrested without any valid reason and reasonable suspicion. The petition has also sought the Supreme Court to formulate a set of guidelines directing the law enforcement authorities in how to deal with the arrest and detention of persons, legal sources said.

Senior Attorney-at-Law Mohan Balendra filed the FR petition on behalf of the CPA citing the Defence Minister, Defence Secretary, Commanders of the Sri Lanka Army, Sri Lanka Navy and Sri Lanka Air Force, Inspector General of Police, Nugegoda Police Officer and Attorney General as respondents.

The petitioner has sought the Court to order these respondents not to arrest and detain Tamil citizens without valid reason and reasonable suspicion.

The petitioner has brought to the notice of the Supreme Court that in recent days several hundred Tamils have been taken into custody and being detained by the law enforcement authority for only reason that they are all from Tamil community.

The Supreme Court should guarantee that in future that Tamils would not be arrested for only reason that they are Tamils, the petitioner pleads.

The petitioner has begged court to declare that the fundamental rights of hundreds of Tamil citizens have been violated due to unlawful arrest and detention in recent times. Hence the court should order appropriate relief to those affected by these arrests and detention.

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