UN team begins review of Sri Lanka anti-torture safeguards
Set to visit Welikada Prison on Tuesday or Wednesday
COLOMBO – A delegation from the United Nations Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT), that arrived on an official visit to Sri Lanka on Monday (15), is expected to conduct a field inspection of Welikada Prison within the next two days as part of its assessment of the country’s safeguards against torture and ill-treatment, informed sources said.
The delegation, led by SPT Chair Aisha Shujune Muhammad (Maldives), is on a 10-day mission aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of the country’s national preventive mechanism (NPM) and reviewing progress made since the Subcommittee’s last visit in 2019. The team also includes SPT members Jakub Julian Czepek (Poland), Nika Kvaratskhelia (Georgia), and Anica Tomsic (Croatia).
According to sources familiar with the visit, the delegation is expected to inspect Welikada Prison either on Tuesday (16) or Wednesday (17) as part of a series of visits to detention facilities and other locations where individuals may be deprived of their liberty. The delegation is scheduled to remain in Sri Lanka until June 24.
Speaking on the objectives of the mission, Shujune Muhamma noted that a significant development since the Subcommittee’s previous visit was the establishment of a national preventive mechanism by the Sri Lankan government.
“A key development since our 2019 visit is that the government has introduced a national preventive mechanism to help prevent torture. That is an important step in the journey to preventing torture,” she said, noting that the current visit aims primarily to assess the effectiveness of that national preventive mechanism and to review how past recommendations have been implemented.
She said the Subcommittee would work closely with Sri Lanka’s national preventive mechanism during the visit, including conducting joint inspections of relevant facilities.
Sri Lanka became subject to the preventive monitoring framework under the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture, enabling the Subcommittee to visit places of detention either with prior notification or, where circumstances warrant, without advance notice.
During its stay, the delegation is expected to hold consultations with officials from the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, the National Police Commission, the national preventive mechanism, civil society representatives and other stakeholders involved in detention oversight and human rights protection.
-ENCL
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