URGENT APPEAL THE OBSERVATORY
LKA 001 / 1007 / OBS 124
Killing
Sri Lanka
October 5, 2007
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), expresses its deepest concern regarding the following situation in Sri Lanka.
Brief description of the situation:
The Observatory has been informed by Forum Asia of the killing of Rev. Fr. Nicholaspillai Packiaranjith, a Catholic priest from the Diocese of Mannar. He had been working to assist and protect children and internally displaced peoples (IDPs) in and around Mannar, as the District Coordinator of the well known international church agency Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS).
According to the information received, Fr Packiaranjith, known as Fr. Ranjit, was killed in a claymore blast[1] in the Mallavi area, on September 26, 2007, while he was carrying humanitarian supplies to a camp and orphanage at Vidathalvu for people affected by the war, and as he was in a vehicle clearly marked with JRS logo. The Mallavi area is under the control of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), however, the political wing of LTTE condemned the killing "without reservation".
According to various sources, the deliberate killing comes less than two weeks after the Sri Lankan government dismissed and denied submissions by Sri Lankan and international religious and civil society groups to the UN Human Rights Council on attacks on religious leaders and places of worship as "isolated incidents" and a "desperate attempt by a small number of NGOs to portray Sri Lanka as a country where religious leaders and places of workshop have been under constant attack."
According to the information received, no one has been prosecuted in relation to the above incidents.
The Observatory is extremely concerned about this killing which illustrates the situation of extreme insecurity faced by religious leaders and humanitarian workers in Sri Lanka. Threats, especially as they take place in a context of increased threats against humanitarian workers, defenders working for peace and journalists, in particular in the northern and eastern provinces, especially since the intensification of the conflict in July 2006. The Observatory recalls that, in this context, the Sri Lankan government has imposed an unofficial embargo on humanitarian aid in the zones controlled by the LTTE and that various restrictions were imposed on humanitarian workers, regarding, in particular, their registration process. These restrictions and the attacks on humanitarian workers have led several organisations to suspend their humanitarian activities
Actions requested:
Please write to the authorities of Sri Lanka asking them to:
i. Order a thorough and impartial investigation into the killing of Fr Packiaranjith, in order to identify all those responsible, bring them before a civil competent and impartial tribunal and apply to them the penal sanctions provided by the law;
ii. Put an end to the deadly attacks and the harassment against all human rights defenders and humanitarian workers in the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka;
iii. Conform with the provisions of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 9, 1998, especially its Article 1, which states that "everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels", and Article 12.2, which provides that "the State shall take all necessary measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of everyone, individually and in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred to in the present Declaration";
iv. Ensure in all circumstances respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with international human rights standards and international instruments ratified by the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka.
Addresses:
President Mahinda Rajapakse, Presidential Secretariat, Colombo 1, Sri Lanka, Fax: + 94 11 2446657 / +94 11 2472100.
Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Secretary, Ministry of Defence, 15/5 Baladaksha Mawatha, Colombo 3, Sri Lanka, Fax: +94 11 2446 300 / +94 11 2541 529
Mr. Victor Perera, Inspector General of Police, New Secretariat, Colombo 1, Sri Lanka, Fax: +94 11 2 440440 / 327877. E-mail: igp@police.lk
Mr. C.R. De Silva, Attorney General, Attorney General's Department, Colombo 12, Sri Lanka, Fax: +94 11 2 436421, Email: attorney@sri.lanka.net
National Police Commission, 3rd Floor, Rotunda Towers, 109 Galle Road, Colombo 03, Sri Lanka, Tel: +94 11 2 395310. Fax: +94 11 2 395867. E-mail: npcgen@sltnet.lk
Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, No. 36, Kynsey Road, Colombo 8, Sri Lanka. Tel: +94 11 2 694 925 / 673 806. Fax: +94 11 2 694 924 / 696 470. E-mail: sechrc@sltnet.lk
Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in Sri Lanka, 56 rue De Moillebeau, 5th Floor, 12119 Geneva 19, Switzerland, Fax: + 41-22 734 90 84, E-mail: mission.srilanka@ties.itu.int
Embassy of Sri Lanka in Brussels, 27 rue Jules Lejeune, 1050 Ixelles, Belgium. Tel: + 32 2 344 53 94/ + 32 2 344 55 85. Fax: + 32 2 344 67 37. Email: sri.lanka@euronet.be
Please also write to the diplomatic mission or embassy of Sri Lanka in your respective country.
***
Geneva - Paris, October 5, 2007
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
-
[1] A claymore mine is a generic term for a directional fragmentation munition that can function either in a command-detonated mode or victim-activated mode.
