The effort to implement better policing in Sri Lanka has stalled, and international pressure on the government has produced only the appearance of respect for human rights. This chapter finds that police reform will not work while the civil war is ongoing or while politicians are unwilling to end their patronage of the police. In order to begin to democratise the police, the government must scale back the military offensive against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and pursue a long-term political solution that involves devolution to the provinces. Police human rights abuses must be impartially investigated and prosecuted so as to end the culture of impunity.
After a brief period of calm initiated by the 2002 ceasefire agreement, military confrontation between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the LTTE intensified under the administration elected in 2005. A culture of impunity in the security sector quickly developed once more. Extra-judicial killings, abductions and disappearances increased, and emergency regulations restricted civil liberties. When complaints of police abuses are made, they are investigated by high-ranking officers in the same area. If a case reaches the court, the judiciary frequently fails to hold wrongdoers accountable.
Attempts to reform the police in Sri Lanka have largely fallen victim to the military offensive against the LTTE. For instance, where military strategy may conflict with investigations into alleged abuses, the investigation may simply not be allowed. Further, the use of the military for policing functions makes it difficult to determine responsibility for abuses. Past reforms have included:
- The 17th Amendment to the Sri Lankan Constitution, 2001: This sought to end the politicisation of public bodies by creating an apolitical Constitutional Council (CC) to make appointments to key institutions. The Amendment provided for the creation of a National Police Commission (NPC) to insulate the police from political interference and to investigate public complaints against the police. Adjustments to NPC delegations in 2004 initiated partial success, but NPC members later became political Presidential appointees. The NPC’s functioning has also been hampered by lack of financial resources, inadequate investigative powers, lack of cooperation from the police department and mistrust from the constabulary.
- Swedish-led SLP reform, 2005: This collaborative effort began when the ceasefire between the GoSL and the LTTE was still in place. The objectives were to: 1) improve crime investigations, including crime scene examinations; 2) strengthen the respect and promotion of ethnic integration and human rights; and 3) increase police management capacity. However, renewed hostilities made the programme untenable.
- Superficial responses to international criticism: Sri Lankan governments have responded to international criticism by setting up mechanisms that give the impression of addressing human rights violations. None of these mechanisms have halted disappearances.
The government should seek a political solution to the current conflict, respect the 17th Amendment, address Sri Lanka’s culture of impunity and strengthen the National Police Commission by appointing an independent Chairperson. Further recommendations are that:
- The National Police Commission should: strengthen the Public Complaints Investigation Division so that complainants receive redress; fill its personnel vacancies; and do more to address political interference so as to win the respect of police personnel.
- The Sri Lanka Police should: limit unjust and illegitimate transfers and promotions; hold senior officers responsible for human rights abuses committed with their knowledge; centralise internal discipline into one unit; strengthen the Human Rights Division; recruit more Tamils and police Tamil-speaking districts; ensure understanding of the fact that information elicited via torture is unreliable; and improve training in investigative techniques.
- Civil Society Organisations should: campaign and educate on the need for police reform; develop police-specific documentation centres; and encourage community policing by helping to facilitate local conflict resolution and building citizen-police trust. The Citizens’ Committees in Ratnapura district provide successful models of community participation in neighbourhood security.
