Tamil returnees from UK face possible torture in Sri Lanka: Report

[TamilNet, Saturday, 15 September 2012, 03:35 GMT]
Freedom from Torture (FfT),a medical foundation for the care of victims of torture, in a report released this week, pointed to the evidence of more than 20 Eezham Tamils who experienced torture after returning voluntarily to Sri Lanka in the post-conflict period, and said that the Organization "considers that the UK's removal policy for Sri Lanka is based on a flawed assessment of risk." Asserting that the examined cases "reveal that Sri Lankan Tamils who in the past had an actual or perceived association at any level with the LTTE but were able to leave Sri Lanka safely now face risk of torture on return," the FfT added that there "should be a pause in forcible removals of Tamils to Sri Lanka" while the UK Border Agency's policy on removals to Sri Lanka is changed to properly reflect the evidence presented in FfT's report.

The report adds, "[o]ur evidence demonstrated that torture continues to be perpetrated in Sri Lanka following the conflict and that those at particular risk include Tamils with an actual or perceived association with the LTTE, including those returning from abroad.

"In its concluding observations, the UN Committee against Torture emphasised its concerns about 'the continued and consistent allegations of widespread use of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of suspects in police custody' and 'reports that suggest that torture and ill-treatment perpetrated by State actors, both the military and the police, have continued in many parts of the country after the conflict ended in May 2009 and is still occurring in 2011," the Freedom from Torture said in its report.

The new evidence presented in the report included 6 cases of forensically documented Medico-Legal Report (MLR)s originally submitted to th U.N. Committee Against Torture, 6 additional cases of documented after the UN submission, and 12 cases referred to the Organization by the health care professionals in the National Health Service or the voluntary sector, the report said.

PDF IconHRW: Suspend deportation of Tamils
to Sri Lanka
Human Rights Watch has documented 13 credible cases over the past two years in which failed Tamil asylum-seekers from Europe have been tortured after landing in Sri Lanka, and warned that those cases are likely to be "just the tip of the iceberg."

PDF IconHRW: Halt deportation of Tamils to
Sri Lanka
The imminent threat of torture of returning refugees of Eezham Tamil origin is increasingly being accepted in the Courts in the West, observers said. In a recent extradition case in Melbourne Federal Court, the Judge ruled that the Australian Attorney General failed to ascertain that a Tamil detainee accused by the US of assisting Liberation Tigers will not face torture in Sri Lanka. The man, Thulasitharan Santhirarajah, was released from remand jail.


Chronology:


Related Articles:
09.09.12   Australia deals legal setback to US on extradition cases
29.05.12   HRW urges UK to suspend deportation of Tamils

 

Latest 15 Reports
24.04.22 05:44  
தீவின் நெருக்கடிச் சூழலில் ஈழத்தமிழர் தேசம் கடைப்பிடிக்கவேண்டிய நிலைப்பாடுகள்
09.04.22 14:44   Photo
குறிதவறும் ஈழத்தமிழர் தலைமைகளுக்கு வரலாறு தருகின்ற எச்சரிக்கை
21.01.22 07:24   Photo
ஈழத்தமிழர் தேசத்தின் தலைமைத்துவம் தேர்தல் அரசியற் கட்சிகளுக்கு அப்பாலானது
02.11.21 15:32   Photo
13 ஆம் சட்டத்திருத்தத்தால் கட்டமைக்கப்பட்ட இன அழிப்பை எதிர்கொள்ள முடியுமா?
15.09.21 08:19  
English version not available
17.05.21 19:23   Photo
Ananthi blames war criminal Silva for blocking collective memorial at Mu'l'livaaykkaal
09.04.21 14:46  
English version not available
23.03.21 12:41   Photo
No focus on Tamil genocide, geopolitics gets played out in Geneva in favour of QUAD formation
21.03.21 13:34   Photo
Navi Pillay explains ‘human rights’ limitations in Geneva on Tamil genocide
15.03.21 20:36   Photo
Deceived Tamil activists in UK falsely claimed ‘substantial changes’ to Zero draft
09.03.21 21:34   Photo
UK repeatedly wronged Tamils says hunger-striker, demands genocide justice
26.02.21 11:53   Photo
Tamils witness false dilemma in Geneva as geopolitical formations pit against each other
19.02.21 14:02   Photo
UK not prepared to push for ICC option in new UNHRC Resolution
07.02.21 23:16   Photo
Unprecedented P2P uprising paves the way for rights-oriented politics of Tamils and Muslims
22.01.21 08:01   Photo
Gotabaya sets up deceptive COI citing ‘sovereignty’ and ‘non-aligned’ foreign policy
 
Find this article at:
http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=35568