CAT/C/59/D/652/2015
eventually released. While searching for his father, his brother was detained by Sri Lankan
Task Force personnel in a detention camp. He never returned, and the complainant believes
he was killed.
2.2
The complainant submits that on 17 June 1993, while travelling to Colombo, he was
stopped by the police at a checkpoint in Peliyagoda, suspected of involvement with the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) because he was a young Tamil male and had no
identification papers with him. He was taken to a police station and kept there for three
months. While in detention, he was interrogated, beaten and threatened. He denied being
involved with LTTE. However, he was forced to sign a document which he did not
understand. Later, he discovered that it was a confession. In September 1993, he was
transferred to a prison. In December 1994, a court found that there was no sufficient
evidence against him and ordered his release without charges. 1
2.3
Afterwards, the complainant lived in Negombo, near Colombo, where he started a
family and worked as a sales assistant and as a bus driver. He alleges that in 1999, he was
again arrested by the police, stripped naked, beaten and tortured for one month. The police
referred to the confession he had been forced to sign. In 2000, he was again arrested by the
Criminal Investigations Division and questioned about his involvement in a bomb blast. He
was held at Wellaimpitiya police station for three months, during which time he was again
tortured and beaten. He was released after appearing in court. Afterwards, he and his family
moved to Chenkalady/Eravur.
2.4
On 4 January 2006, the complainant was issued a passport in Sri Lanka with a date
of expiry of January 2011. Later in 2006, the complainant travelled to Dubai, where he
lived and worked as a “process worker” for a plastics company. When his visa expired in
2009, he returned to Sri Lanka and purchased a three-wheeled vehicle to work as a taxi
driver. At that time, he established his residence in Chenkalady/Eravur and joined the
Chenkalady Auto Union.
2.5
The complainant submits that on 10 January 2012, he had an argument with a taxi
driver related to their position in the taxi line, and that the driver threatened him by
reminding that his brother, R.M, was influential as he was the chair of the local authority
and a member of Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pullikal. He further submits that R.M. worked
for Mr. Pilliayan, who was the Chief Minister of the Eastern Province and a member of
Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pullikal.
2.6
The complainant alleges that the next day, R.M., five other persons and a policeman
came to the taxi rank, looking for him. He claims that he was beaten, threatened, and had a
gun pointed to his chest on the street, in front of many witnesses. He then rushed to the
local police station. R.M. followed him, attempted to beat him inside the police station, and
told the police that the complainant was working against him. The police advised the
complainant not to file a complaint against R.M., as there might be consequences if he did
so.
2.7
In the following days the complainant hid at his mother’s house out of fear, as his
colleagues had told him that R.M. had been searching for him at the taxi rank. On an
unspecified date, unknown men arrived at his house and told his wife that they had been
1
2
The complainant submits a letter in Sinhalese dated January 1995, written by the officer in charge of
the Security Coordination Division of Kalaniya, with a translation notarized in Sri Lanka. It refers to
his arrest in June 1993 in connection with suspected terrorist activities and his release in December
1994 owing to insufficient evidence before the court. He also submits another letter in Sinhalese dated
December 1994, written by an official of New Magazines Prison in Colombo, again with a notarized
translation. It refers to his detention since September 1993, along with his case number and the date
of his subsequent release.