Sri Lanka slammed for giving spy boss one more year

Sri Lanka has come under heavy criticism for showing “utter disdain for victims of torture and the UN system” by extending the tenure of its head spy for another year.

Slamming the government decision to keep Sisira Mendis until July 2018 as the Chief of National Intelligence (CNI), International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP) in a hard hitting statement on Monday (24), said it was 'stunned'.

“Sri Lanka is constantly rewarding and protecting alleged perpetrators – with top army positions, diplomatic postings, and even appointments to the body designed to protect witnesses,” said the ITJP’s Executive Director, Yasmin Sooka. “Where is the respect for the victims? I am stunned by this provocative action without any investigation being initiated”.

Sisira Mendis was head of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the police and the Terrorism Investigation Division (TID), both feared for its widespread use of torture against detainees.

Journalists tortured

Well known journalists J. S. Tissainayagam, V. Jasikaran and his wife V. Valarmathy, and K. Wijesinghe are among the prominent media figures who experienced cruel treatment at the hands of the TID.

They were all forced to leave their motherland and live in exile.

Repeated calls by the UN among others to investigate allegations against the two police units and the role of its former head Mendis have been ignored.

JDS joined several rights watchdogs last November to provide the UN with credible evidence of torture under Sisira Mendis.

His term was to end on 27 July 2017.

© JDS

left

Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka

  • JDS is the Sri Lankan partner organization of international media rights group, Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The launching of this website was made possible by the EU’s European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR), of which Reporters Without Borders is a beneficiary.