Minister of Law & Order Sagala Ratnayaka told Parliament on Tuesday that his Ministry was looking at installing CCTV cameras at police stations and prison departments. He made this statement in response to a declaration by Joint Opposition Parliamentarian Dinesh Gunawardena that it was the duty of the police to safeguard a person’s life.
Dinesh
“This is not a case about some robbery; this is a case where a man has lost his life. This is a very serious matter. If a person who is breathing goes into a police station, that same person must leave the police station breathing,” Gunawardena said with reference to the incident where a 30 year old man died while in custody at the Pussellawa Police station over the weekend.
The Joint Opposition Parliamentarian also said that be it Sinhalese, Tamils or Muslims, no person should die while in police custody. “We are asking for a special investigation and we
want the culprits to be punished,” he said.
In response, Ratnayaka said that as per regulation, the police must check the condition of an inmate every half an hour. “Usually at any police station from the reserve desk, the police officer can see the inmate in the cell. But at this station, where the reserve desk is located the officer cannot see the cell directly,” he said.
Sagala Ratnayaka – Minister of Law & Order
Ratnayaka added that disciplinary action will be taken if the officers were found of any wrongdoing. “I have ordered the police stations and prison department to explore the possibilities of installing CCTV cameras,” the Minister said.
Over the weekend two police officers; a Sub Inspector and a Police Constable attached to the Pussellawa Police Station were suspended after 30 year old Kaviraj Ravichandran from Pussellawa died reportedly from committing suicide by hanging himself in his prison cell using the shirt he was wearing. However, residents fear he may have been tortured to his death by the police.
Meanwhile, a magisterial inquiry will be held on Friday where the Government Analyst will submit the report over the cause of Ravichandran’s death.
vishvajith / September 21, 2016
I agree.
Then coming from you it is so,so rich.
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Sam Fernando / September 21, 2016
This Dinsh has lost to all appalling levels to this date, having made personal efforts to protect the predators.
Anyways that was not his seniors were supposed to ever feel by this epoche of the country. He is an another shamless old man, not knowing what he is doing really.
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Amarasiri / September 21, 2016
Minister of Law & Order Sagala Ratnayaka
RE; Dinesh Says Police Duty To Safeguard A Life; Sagala Says Looking at Installing CCTV Cameras At Police Stations
Yes, accountability and transparency.
Also appoint a Police Custody Victims Commission with Powers to Inquire and Prosecute, like the FCID.
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Ben Hulring / September 21, 2016
Picasso of rectum speech Dinesh G making us laugh again.
During 10 years of Rajapassa carnage & white van liftings this monkey never opened his mouth.
This is what happens seats of our Parliament are shared or inherited in the family. This guy has been living off his Dad Philip’s legacy all his life.
Feeding off generous hand-outs given to useless politcians by terribly poor tax-payers of Sri Lanka.
Cheers!
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Aia / September 21, 2016
The IGP, Sagala, the PM and the HE have to sit together and take hard look at what has been happening for people in police custody. It is real shame that a gang comes to the power promising good governance unable to protect a citizen who is even in the protectors’ safe keeping and inside a well fortified and guarded premises.
Given the kind of incidents or accidents repeating, can the minister and the IGP make a visit to each police station and stress upon the police that past is past, at lest now on, the police should set an example in their behavior. Warn them it will not be the transfers or interdictions that the punishments that you are used to, but the one responsible for the crimes might also has a fair chance of ending up in the same cells that the victims hung themselves or took their life through whichever method they alleged to have used, hmm.. a detainee used his shirt to hang himself… what a robust shirt that must have been, maybe tailor made for this specific purpose, who would believe it and what kind of trust the public in its catchment is expected to have on these men. If not able to make a visit to each station sirs, pick some notorious ones and make a surprise visit, if you are really want to curb this menace. Looking from outside, it appears things are not in order and each station appears to have its own culture, there seems to be a lot to pick up from such visits, at least one or two tins with chilli poweder, if empty, still you should be able to smell them. If such an action eliminates an unnecessary death, it is worth to do it, instead of going to pansala, church or temple, don’t you think?. It doesn’t really augur sir, after loosing a live, coming to the parliament and saying the cell was located away from the sight of officer on duty or blah,,blah, and the unfortunate thing had happened, what a phony excuses. Would you buy this kind of reasoning if lives of your son or daughter took away this way?. Only suggestions, a clean up is what is required, literally as well as structurally. We have quite capable men to correct these types of flaws, we don’t need foreigners pointing figure at us. More alarming is, LTTE is no more to be used as an escape route.
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Native Vedda / September 21, 2016
Dinesh Gunawardena says:
“If a person who is breathing goes into a police station, that same person must leave the police station breathing,”
Well lets see how many of the remand prisoners went into the police station breathing didn’t leave the police station not breathing:
Sadun Mallinga went in (7 May 2014) breathing but forgot to breath inside the Kandaketiya police station on 8 May 2014.
Ranmukage Ajith Prasanna (30) went in Embilipitiya Police Station on 17 September 2010 then on the 18 September 201 he decided to stop breathing.
Sunil Perera went in breathing on 28 June 2006 and decided to stop breathing on 6 July 2006 in prison.
When Pichchei Jesudasan was breathing but stopped breathing at Magazin Prison on 15 October 2011.
Weliweria and more, including incidents at Welikada prison massacre.
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Nagananda / September 21, 2016
Nobody wants to talk about the truth. In theory police shall be a watchdog for the people and committed to enforce the rule of law. Yet, in practice police is a watchdog of the masters, or rulers, simply carryout orders of the masters, whether the orders are morally and legally correct or otherwise.
This is why the Attorney General defends them in right violations petitions in the Supreme Court, whereas the role of the AG is to defend the people when any arm of the government abuse people’s sovereign rights
President J R Jayawardena once freely conceded that he had personally ordered the promotion of the two police officers (June 1983), and the payment out of public funds of the damages and the costs. This he said had been necessary to maintain police morale … at a time when he found the Supreme Court a hindrance to his policies.
MR regime that is responsible for killing innocent citizens who exercised their right to express their freedom of expression was worst eg. Ratupaswala execution of innocent civilians by firing squad
Still one should not forget that there are officers in police and also in the armed forces who respect the rule of law and refuse to carryout unlawful orders given to them by self-centered corrupt politicos who openly violates the social contract they have entered with the people to rule the country with due respect and regard to the rule of law and the democratic rights of the people guaranteed by the Constitution and the IPPCR Law, now a part of our law since enactment of Act No 56 of 2007.
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Rodney / September 21, 2016
Dinesh born again…
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vishvajith / September 21, 2016
Reminds me of Felix Dias B., when he discovered Jesus at the latter part of his life.
His Buddhist way of life started the rot in 1971. Hope the bugger is born a Tamil or Muslim kid in SL.
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Paul / September 21, 2016
Complete waste of time and money. In critical cases the cameras will unaccountably fail. What is needed is a change in culture. And that must come from the top.
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Upali Weerasinghe / September 21, 2016
Dinesh,
The era where suspects taken in search of weapons were shot dead and drowning are over. Duty to safeguard suspects in custody was there prior to Jan. 8th 2015 one should realize. That is one of the reasons Dinesh is sitting in the opposition today.
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De Silva / September 21, 2016
Well, CCTV works. Its a common solution to a common problem world over.
Police Brutality UK caught on security video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnjtJ2lrAdk
Ohio Cop Slams Drunk Autistic Man’s Head
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nc7vncp00_o
In India its the opposite however. The cops get beaten up there.
Girl Slapping Mumbai Police Officials.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xk5sGnpbUyw
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Gamarala / September 21, 2016
Dinesh is speaking as if he was living in another world for last ten years.
It is the people who vote again and again to such humbugs (from all political parties) who should be punished.
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Vanguard / September 21, 2016
Something must be done about the police. Can’t have Good Gov
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justice / September 21, 2016
Persons “hanging themselves in police station cells” has been reported many times earlier.
To hang oneself, one needs a sturdy rope or similar instrument, a strong fixture on the ceiling to tie the rope, and a distance of at least ten feet below – two between the neck and fixture, 5 to 6 feet for the body height and one or two feet below this to hang free.
Police station cells are about six feet or a little more in height from the floor with flat concrete roofs with no fixtures.
It is not possible to twist a shirt to make a rope long & strong enough, and, to support a weight of 120 lbs and more.
If the inquiring magistrate visits, he/she can see this.
This “fairy tale” has been accepted many times, and shows the state of mind of our gullible judiciary who accept all that is said by police without question.
The police personnel should have been interdicted, not “suspended” whatever that means.
This is firstly, a matter for investigation by a judicial medical officer and later, if he thinks necessary, for the Government Analyst to report on body fluids, parts, and stomach contents.
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Mano Ratwatte / September 21, 2016
Absolutely essential to install CCTV in Police Stations. It reduces mutual suspicion and can either exonerate cops or help find wrong doings. It will cost a lot but it is something that will help in the long term. With so many questionable shootings of black people in the USA most police forces are now using Body Cameras. All Cop cars in the US have cameras. This does not mean it is 100% fail safe but it will help in cases of suspected wrongful or racially motivated shootings. This week in the USA there were 2 tragic shootings of black people; one in Tulsa and one in Charlotte. Sometimes camera evidence can help expose Police excesses.
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Ben Hulring / September 21, 2016
Picasso of rectum speech Dinesh G making us laugh again.
During 10 years of Rajapassa carnage & white van liftings this monkey never opened his mouth.
This is what happens seats of our Parliament are shared or inherited in the family. This guy has been living off his Dad Philip’s legacy all his life.
Feeding off generous hand-outs given to useless politcians by terribly poor tax-payers of Sri Lanka.
Cheers!
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justice / September 22, 2016
Mano Ratwatte,
In the USA, all persons are ‘read their rights’ after arrest.
One right is the ‘right to an attorney’.
In Sri Lanka, lawyers never visit clients in police stations, nor are they present during interrogation.
If this is allowed, torture, and miscarriage of justice will be prevented.
This right should be enshrined in the constitution and the Bar Association should demand it.
CCTV cameras can be tampered/covered, recordings erased and conveniently be ‘out of order’.
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Better late than never. / September 23, 2016
The decision is long overdue , but better late than never .
Lately a friend of mine had his vehicle tinted 100% dark rear and 60 or 70 % lighter shade in the front .While he has been driving for nearly a year with it he had no problem at all ,but recently his vehicle was singled out by the city Police constable almost jumping in the middle of the road to stop him while letting pass all the other Vehicles with tinted glass in front as well as back , and he wanted him to get the front stickers removed immediately and come over to the City police .
When he had questioned him why was the matter not mention in the media and a time frame given , the policeman was sarcastic and asked him if he does not read the paper of listen to the media or read news on Internet media, and then my friend asked his why he did not stop the many vehicles with font glass tinted ,he bluntly told him everyone has been informed and will be taken to court in a short while , but we checked with more than 30 vehicles and none of them were stopped or reprimanded , so far in few days few have a record of 296 vehicles running with front glass tinted , and I asked my friend to file a human right case against the police officer for the discrimination , but he is afraid of his life ,as most people who go into police station under Yahapalana do not come out alive these days and also the Human rights seemed to be under the control of the Police as so far no action has been taken against them.
Can anyone please advice ? Is there any way CT can high light this issue ? another police officer told him may be they all have permission from the Ministry of defense , 300 odd normal none luxury cars , mind you 300 odd is what we roughly counted we intend to now start recording the numbers with the number plates we have so far a group of 10 youngsters willing to do it and if we can prove that all the vehicles that has no official approval from defense ministry with front tinted glass ,do you think we can file a discrimination case in local courts against the police officer?
Will the police being so notorious these days kidnapped my friend and kill him as it goes unpunished and unnoticed these days ?
Should my friend approach a lawyer first ? or should he ask for an appointed with one of the Joint opposition members to present it in parliament ,with the details of the charge sheet etc. or talk to the press?
Any advice and any help from the CT ,readers , activists and The MPS of the Joint opposition will be highly appreciated .
Discrimination so openly is such shameful , when you have thousands of cars running with tinted glass to insist one person to remove it ,probably on a revenge tip off , I may speculate .
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Pot calling the Kettle black is what we see with Yahapalana / September 23, 2016
We have checked thoroughly ,there are no new media publication since 2010 , banning front glass tinting , or any frame work of time given to people to remove it.(The cop lied)
In such economic hard times especially small car owners who have spent money to put the tint on, will lose in three ways ,one in putting it on , two the cost removing it , three the excess of fuel loss.
With such uncertain and bias law and ruthless police country , with open discrimination and murdering people in custody by the very people who are suppose to protect ,Yahapalana is expecting foreign investors to come and put their money in this country ? if they can do this to Citizen ? what guarantee is there for the foreigners ?
And the forbes road Colombo 10 is fully taken over by drug peddlers and drug addicts and the poor helpless Sinhalese shop owners have given up due to fear .
The drug addicts threaten customers and fleece them , even after many complaints the Maradana Police has done nothing and the City police ignore the huge traffic caused by these criminals in jaya road .
Shame on Yahapalana ..
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