The Centre for Policy Alternatives released a set of infographics on the death penalty in Sri Lanka.
There are 7 infographics in the series. They are available in English, Sinhala, and Tamil and can be downloaded here.
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 8 July, 2019 Letter to MPs: Need For Legislative Reforms to Prevent the Execution of the Death Penalty
July 2nd 2019: CPA sent letters to all 225 Members of Parliament, urging them on the need for legislative reforms in the criminal justice system in Sri Lanka including the need to abolish the death penalty from all existing statutes.
The letter reads as follows:
President Maithripala Sirisena on 26th June 2019 commented of having signed four warrants to
execute inmates who are currently on death row. No details have been shared publicly on the
identity of the four individuals. The death penalty was not implemented in Sri Lanka since 1976 and
a moratorium for 43years is currently in force.
Since 2007 the UN General Assembly has adopted seven resolutions calling for the establishment of
a “moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty” with Sri Lanka having
voted in favour of five of these resolutions, including most recently in December 2018. The
resuming of executions would, therefore, go against the position taken by Sri Lanka in the
international fora over the years. This is also in a context where a majority of countries have
abolished the death penalty in their respective contexts and there is a decrease of executions
carried out globally. Therefore, to revive the death penalty would be against this global human
rights trend. Further, it is now established that drug-related offences are not considered as ‘most
serious crimes’ under Article 6(2) of the ICCPR.
At the practical level, there is no evidence to demonstrate that the death penalty is a deterrence to
crime. It must also be noted in a country like Sri Lanka with prevalent impunity, corruption and
problems in the criminal justice, the possibility of an innocent person being convicted is extremely
high with the potential for a miscarriage of justice. As you are aware, the implementation of the
death penalty is irreversible and in the event of a miscarriage of justice may lead to a cruel and
inhuman degrading punishment and irreparable harm.
The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) writes to you in the context of urgent legislative reforms
needed in the criminal justice system in Sri Lanka including the need to abolish the death penalty
from all existing statutes. Such a measure would ensure there is no miscarriage of justice and that
one single individual does not have the power to decide on life and death. We urge you as a
representative of the people to take this critical step to prevent an irreparable and irrevocable step
that can lead to taking the life of an individual. We also request you to explore the urgent need to
initiate criminal justice reforms including introducing reforms to address delays in the system and
structural reforms. Some of these issues have already been explored by the Parliament Sectoral
Committee on Legal Affairs (Anti-Corruption) and Media as well as other initiatives. CPA is also able
to assist if additional information is required and we look forward to engaging in this regard.
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 1 July, 2019 Centre for Policy Alternatives v Attorney General ( SC FR 273 / 2019)
01st July 2019, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) and its Executive Director, Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, filed papers challenging the President’s act of signing the death warrant of four persons convicted of drug-related offences.
CPA notes that it has long been recognised that hanging by death is a cruel and inhuman form of punishment, not befitting a multi religious and civilised society. Though convicts have been sentenced to death, the long recognised practice in Sri Lanka for over 43 years has been that they were not executed.
CPA reiterates that the implementation of death penalty at this juncture is a violation of fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 11[Freedom from torture] and under Article 12(1) [ All persons are equal before the law and are entitled to equal protection before the law] of the Constitution
CPA’s statement on the resuming of the death penalty can be found here.
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 27 June, 2019 CPA Statement on the Resuming of the Death Penalty
27th June 2019, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) is deeply alarmed by President Maithripala Sirisena’s comments made on 26th June 2019 on signing the death warrants of four persons convicted of drug-related offences; advocating the repeal of the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution; attacking the Parliament Select Committee probing the Easter Sunday attacks; and attacking NGOs, among others. All these comments require urgent attention considering their impact on democracy, governance and security in Sri Lanka, and CPA will provide specific comment on each in future, but at the present moment it focuses on the most urgent matter—resuming the death penalty—which is reported to be imminent.
At the outset, CPA notes that resuming the death penalty goes against decades of Sri Lanka’s domestic and international policy practice. Sri Lanka has maintained a de facto moratorium on the death penalty since 1976. The secretive nature in which the process is being carried out is also extremely concerning as none of the details of who is to be executed, the exact crimes they were convicted of and the date they will be executed have been made public.
Resuming the death penalty goes against a rapidly accelerating global trend towards its abolishment. Since 1976, when Sri Lanka’s last execution was carried out, 87 countries have abolished the death penalty completely, and today more than two-thirds of the world’s countries have abolished it in law or practice. Additionally, there is growing international recognition that harsh, punitive measures are ineffective at addressing drug-related social issues, which is driving the adoption of rehabilitation and decriminalisation measures instead. Resuming the death penalty for drug-related crimes would therefore make Sri Lanka an outlier among strong international consensus.
CPA also notes that Sri Lanka is obliged under international law to refrain from carrying out the death penalty. Sri Lanka is a signatory to the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) which both stress the right to life and oblige states to impose the death penalty in only the most exceptional circumstances for the most serious crimes. The UN Human Rights Committee, which interprets the ICCPR, has repeatedly held that drug offences do not meet the threshold of “most serious crimes”. Further, in 2007, 2008, 2010, 2016 and 2018, Sri Lanka voted for UN General Assembly Resolutions in support of the moratorium on the use of the death penalty.
Morally, the use of the death penalty speaks to the kind of society a country aspires to have. All the major religions practiced in Sri Lanka are founded on principles of non-violence. The re-imposition of the death penalty is a clear violation of these principles. While CPA recognises that the criminal justice system should reproach persons who have committed and are convicted of offences, it also stresses that mistakes can be made in even a perfect legal system. The unique significance of the death penalty as a criminal punishment is its irreversible nature. There are countless examples from around the world where persons sentenced to death have been found not guilty of the crimes they were charged with. The possibility of causing the deaths of innocent persons is a heavy burden for a country to have on its conscience.
CPA calls upon President Sirisena to immediately halt plans of carrying out the death penalty. We also urge the Parliament of Sri Lanka to initiate urgent reforms to repeal the death penalty, a power no one person should possess in a constitutional democracy based on the rule of law. Finally, we call upon fellow citizens and others to publicly condemn the imposing of the death penalty and to agitate on the need for urgent reforms.
Download this statement in English, Sinhala and Tamil.
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 20 June, 2019 Centre for Policy Alternatives v Attorney General ( SC FR 256/ 2019)
20th of June 2019: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) and its Executive Director, Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, filed papers challenging the Presidential Pardon of Gnanasara Thero who was convicted for contempt of court by the Court of Appeal on 8th August 2018. He was sentenced to 19 years of rigorous imprisonment to be completed within 6 years.
CPA notes that the Constitution does not permit the President to act in a manner that undermines and erodes the independence of the judiciary in exercising his right to pardon under Article 34 of the Constitution. Further. after the Nineteenth (19th) Amendment to the Constitution came greater accountability as President’s action (except for the exercise of power to declare war and peace) is reviewable by way of the fundamental rights application before the Supreme Court.
CPA reiterates that grant of pardon for Gnanasara Thero for contempt of court frustrates the power of the judiciary to maintain its authority and upholds its dignity and the rule of law. It is submitted that therefore, that fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 12(1) [ All persons are equal before the law and are entitled to equal protection before the law] has been violated.
[Update – 04 October 2023]
The Supreme Court, today, granted leave to proceed in a Fundamental Rights Application filed by CPA and it’s Executive Director Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, (SC FR 256/2019), challenging the granting of a Presidential Pardon to Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thero, by the then President Maithripala Sirisena.
Leave was granted under Article 12(1) of the Constitution, and the Respondents were directed to file several documents which were sought by the Petitiones.
The case is to be argued on the 6th of May 2024.
CPA’s Statement on the Presidential Pardon of Gnanasara Thero can be accessed here
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 3 June, 2019 RTI Help Desk at CPA – Information and posters
Citizens can call the RTI help desk at CPA from 9am to 5pm on weekdays, for assistance on filing and following up on RTI requests.
The following posters were created to disseminate awareness on the service.
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 1 June, 2019 The Time is Now | දැන් කාලය ඇවිත් | தற்பொழுது காலம் உருவாகியுள்ளது
A media campaign was launched in June 2019, addressing the need for reflection as we mark ten years since the end of the war, in the aftermath of the Easter Sunday attacks and the violence that has followed.
Trilingual videos are embedded below.
The Time is Now
Sri Lanka and its people have suffered through decades of violence, and continue to do so. Over 70 years after independence, ten years on from the end of the war, and as the country undergoes another period of crisis, this is a time to remember and reflect, in the hope that we never have to experience such violence again.
දැන් කාලය ඇවිත්
ප්රචණ්ඩත්වය හේතුකොටගෙන දශක ගණනාවක් පුරා ශ්රී ලංකාව සහ එහි පුරවැසියන් දුක් විඳ ඇත. නිදහසින් පසු වසර 70කට වැඩි කාලයක්ද, යුද්ධයේ අවසානයෙන් පසු වසර දහයකට වැඩි කාලයක්ද, වර්තමානයේ රට මුහුණ දී ඇති අර්බුදකාරී තත්ත්වය යටතේද , එය නැවත සිහිපත් කිරීම සහ මෙනෙහි කිරීමටත් , එවැනි ප්රචණ්ඩකාරී වාතාවරණයක් නැවත ඇති නොවන බවට බලාපොරොත්තු දල්වා ගැනීමටත් කාලය එළැඹ තිබේ.
தற்பொழுது காலம் உருவாகியுள்ளது
வன்முறையினை காரணமாகக் கொண்டு இலங்கை தேசமும் அதன் மக்களும் பல தசாப்தங்களாக பல்வேறு இன்னல்களுக்கு ஆளாகியுள்ளார்கள். சுதந்திரத்தின் பின்னர் 7௦ வருடங்களாகியும், யுத்தம் முடிவடைந்து 10 வருடங்களாகியும் தற்பொழுது நாடு எதிர்நோக்கியுள்ள நெருக்கடி நிலைமையின் கீழ் அதனை மீள நினைவுபடுத்துவதற்கும், இது போன்ற வன்முறைகள் மீண்டுமொருமுறை உருவாகாமல் இருப்பது தொடர்பில் சிந்திப்பதற்கும், செயல்படுவதற்குமான காலம் உருவாகியுள்ளது.