HRW urges the President of Sri Lanka to guarantee the human rights of the protesters attacked by the Police

July 23 (EUROPA PRESS) –

The NGO Human Right Watch (HRW) has urged this Friday the president of Sri Lanka, Ranil Wickremesinghe, to guarantee the Human Rights of the protesters, after the Police dismantled this Friday the main anti-government protest camp in the city of Colombo, in an operation that resulted in at least a dozen people arrested and fifty wounded.

“Just one day after taking office, President Wickremesinghe oversaw a brutal attack by security forces on peaceful protesters in the heart of Colombo,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Right Watch.

Ganguly has considered that this “action sends a dangerous message to the people of Sri Lanka that the new Government intends to act through brute force instead of the rule of law”.

HRM has stated that the Sri Lankan president “must immediately order the security forces to cease all unlawful use of force against protesters, release all those arbitrarily detained and duly investigate and prosecute those responsible for the abuses”.

Likewise, the NGO has asked international partners — both foreign governments and multilateral agencies — to promote the defense of Human Rights so that it is possible “to address the economic crisis in Sri Lanka.”

In fact, HRW has reminded the Asian country that “protections against torture, excessive use of force and other fundamental rights should never be violated”, despite the fact that International Law allows the suspension of certain rights in emergency situations. .

“Emergency powers can be used to detain people without going through the ordinary court process and have been used repeatedly in the past to allow human rights violations,” said the aforementioned NGO.

“The urgent measures needed to address the economic needs of Sri Lankans require a government that respects fundamental rights…Sri Lanka’s international partners must send a loud and clear message that they cannot support an administration that tramples on the rights of its people,” Ganguly said.

The dismantling of the protest camp came less than 24 hours after Wickremesinghe took office, in a ceremony held a day after his election by Parliament.

Security forces had warned that protesters would be detained under emergency laws if they confronted officers.

In a joint operation of the Army, the Police and the Special Force of Sri Lanka, the tents erected in front of the Presidential Secretariat were dismantled.