A Sri Lankan police officer stationed at Jaffna Police Station has been remanded after allegedly forcing his way into a young Tamil woman's home and acting in an unruly manner, in yet another troubling incident highlighting ongoing concerns over police misconduct in the Tamil North-East.
The officer is reported to have unlawfully entered the woman’s residence in a suburban area of Jaffna last week. Following the incident, the victim lodged a formal complaint at the occupying Jaffna Police Station, prompting an internal investigation. The officer was subsequently arrested and produced before the Jaffna Magistrate’s Court on Thursday.
The court has ordered that he be held in remand until Monday, when an identification parade is scheduled to take place.
This latest case adds to a long history of violence, abuse, and impunity associated with Sri Lanka’s police forces. During the armed conflict and in the years since, Tamils have repeatedly been subjected to extrajudicial killings, custodial torture, and sexual violence at the hands of the police.
