Rape and torture by Sri Lankan security forces continues unabated despite the imminent arrival of David Cameron and 50 world leaders for a Commonwealth summit in the country, said Human Rights Watch (HRW) today.
Data gathered by Human Rights Watch revealed that Sri Lanka had the 2nd highest number of outstanding disappearance cases in the world.
Just this year, the rights organisation documented 10 cases of suspects that were tortured and mistreated in detention.
One Tamil women, whose case was documented by Human Rights Watch, told The Daily Telegraph that she was abducted by men driving an unmarked white van in Jaffna on August 12.
After being blindfolded and driven to another town, the victim was stripped, photographed naked, and interrogated by men she believed to be officers of the Criminal Investigation Department. Following a day of captivity, the men beat her with rods and raped her.
On August 31, she was blindfolded and placed in a vehicle again. The victim was then taken to her uncle, who had to pay a bribe to secure her release.
The woman had previously worked as a courier in the LTTE de-facto state.
Describing the abduction to the Daily Telegraph, the victim said,
“I was raped by many men, not just one and it continued until I escaped. They bit me on my backside and breasts.”
“I could not have taken any more. If I have to go back, I would not survive.”
The victim fled to India and then Britain, where she is now seeking asylum.
HRW confirmed that doctors who found marks and scars had verified her testimony. The South Asia director of Human Rights Watch, Mennakshi Ganguly, reiterated,
“Abuses are continuing and people trying to speak. Victims and activists are facing climate of intimidation. Commonwealth leaders need to remind the Sri Lankan Government that the pressure is on-going and everything will not be fine until justice is done.”
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