Participants at meetings with SR

Cases

Relevant SG report

From Country

Country Geolocation

Latitude: 7.87305399999999

Longitude: 80.7717969999999

From Region

UN body that raised the case prior to the SG report

Type of rights defended

Was the victim a civil servant or member of the security forces or of the judiciary?: No

Engagement with UN body

Type of attempted engagement

Meeting with UN officials during country visit / with locally present UN officials

Reprisal information: Following his July 2019 visit to Sri Lanka, the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association condemned surveillance of members of civil society, including that he witnessed, and reminded the Government that it has an obligation to ensure that no acts of reprisal occur against those who wish to interact with UN human rights mechanisms. 92 The Special Rapporteur stated that before, during and after his consultations with civil society in Sri Lanka, participants at the meetings reported “receiving intimidating phone calls, demanding information on other participants, topics discussed and route plans.” The Special Rapporteur further noted that during a consultation in Trincomalee, “presumed intelligence personnel in civilian clothing were observed monitoring participants outside of the meeting place. In another location, military personnel took note of our vehicles’ number plates.” 93

Types of reprisals suffered

Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?: Yes

Government response content: responded to the note verbale sent in connection to the present report. Regarding alleged “intimidating visits”, “surveillance”, “complaints of harassment” and “reprisals”, it invited the parties concerned to make formal complaints to law enforcement authorities, or to independent national institutions such as the Human Rights Commission or the National Police Commission, so that action can be taken to investigate the alleged incidents. The Government stated its commitment to ensuring that complaints received are investigated and prosecuted. It reiterated that, apart from routine security operations in the interest of national security, particularly after the devastating Easter Sunday terrorist attacks of 21 April 2019, the Security Forces and intelligence agencies are not engaged in monitoring any specific group in the country.

Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?: No

Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?: No

Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?: No

#EndReprisals