A case brought by the parents of Ganesan Nimalaruban, who died last year in a Vavuniya prison, has been dismissed by the Supreme Court.
Nimalaruban died along with another inmate after riots by Tamil detainees, during which several prison guards were taken hostage.
Prison officials say Nimalaruban died of heart disease, however his family and lawyers say that his body had physical injuries.
The de facto Chief Justice Mohan Peiris is reported to have dismissed the case before hearing any evidence, saying that lawyers have a responsibility to the country and that bringing such cases against prison officers will encourage more inmates to riots and thus send the wrong message. He acknowledged that Nimalaruban’s death could also be due to blunt force trauma.
A report by the Asian Human Rights Commission said the ruling will encourage more violence against detainees.
“The approach that the de facto CJ has adopted will encourage other officers also to act against the law and to cause problems for prisoners, including their death as it happened in this case. When officers know that the court is not willing to look into complaints against them there is nothing to restrain them from abusing their power.”
Ganesan Nimalaruban death: S Lanka rights case dismissed - BBC (14 Oct 2013)
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