The Violation of Rights of Refugees

Position paper Sri Lanka

The government cooperated with the UNHCR and other humanitarian organizations in assisting
IDPs and refugees. The government assisted in returning to their homes approximately 40,000
civilians displaced in July and August by military engagement in Muttur. There were no reports of
refoulement, the forced return of persons to a country where they feared persecution.

Sri Lanka allows in its territory NGOs to help IDPs and protect their rights.

The use of Torture and Degrading Treatment to War Prisoners

Sri Lanka position paper

1. The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
(1984) condemns torture, as “any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental,
is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person
information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is
suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason
based on discrimination of any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation
of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official
capacity. It does not include pain or suffering arising only from, inherent in or incidental to lawful
sanctions” (Part I, art. 1).

2. Sri Lanka accessed as a part of the Convention of 1984 on the 3rd January 1994.

3. In August 2004, the National Police Commission committed itself to stop addressing torture by
police, accepting the great responsibility of replacing the Inspector General of Police in disciplinary
matters.

4. Sri Lanka believes in autonomy and independence of sovereign States and thinks that the
International Community must respect the power and the right of making its citizens comply with
national and international rules.

5. For these reasons, Sri Lanka affirms that international observers cannot make any kind of study or
research in the territory of a sovereign State without the authorization of that State.

6. And we conclude our position paper affirming that Sri Lanka rejects the possibility of intervention
by international organizations in its own political life, conscious of its dedication and attention to
human rights, testified by its unreserved access to the Convention of 1984.