A Sri Lankan court has once more extended the remand of 10 Tamil men and women arrested under the widely condemned Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), for a memorial ceremony they held on May 18 to commemorate the thousands of Tamils killed by Sri Lankan security forces.
The group of men and women were arrested in May after they held a small scale ceremony at a beach in Batticaloa, wearing masks and following social distancing guidelines.
At the time of arrest, Sri Lankan Police Spokesman DIG Ajith Rohana, claimed the group was arrested for commemorating the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
The Valaichenai District court has now extended their remand until October 25.
Valaichenai District judge today (13) issued an order extending the remand of 10 #Tamils, including 2 women in #Batticaloa, until 25 October, who were arrested under #PTA on May 18th in eastern coastal village of #Kalkudah for holding a memorial for the war dead. #SriLanka pic.twitter.com/lSlEWaRnIz
— JDS (@JDSLanka) October 13, 2021
The repeated extension of their remand under the PTA comes despite international calls for the law to be scrapped.
In June, the EU passed a resolution condemning Sri Lanka's continued use of the PTA, highlighting that the legislation "contains deeply flawed provisions including enabling warrantless arrests and 18-month detentions with limited court oversight."
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