“We followed the lead of the suspects who were accompanying us to disclose the places where they hid their weapons. At the site, the suspects attempted to throw grenades at us and we were compelled to shoot for our self-protection. In this encounter, we are sorry to say, none of the suspects were apprehended again; all of them are dead”
Feel like a familiar statement? If you are Sri Lankan, you should be familiar with this. The above statement has been the excuse for several police-lead executions in the very recent past in Sri Lanka. It seems that the Sri Lankan police has assumed the role of the judicial system and is cleansing the society by eradicating the suspected criminals without giving them a fair trial.
The whole country was shocked at the news of the five murders in Delgoda last month. No person with a human heart would have approved the atrocity and would want nothing but the death penalty to the people who committed the crime. A series of incidents followed these murders. The houses of the suspects were burnt down and the two main suspects were shot to death by the police.
The question is, to what extent should we justify the actions of the police in these situations. Even though I’m so glad that the two persons who commit this brutal act are no more (assuming they are the actual murderers, based on their confession), it is just not the way a civil society should act in such a situation. It should be questioned whether we can justify the outrageous behavior of the people of the village following this event. It seemed that the Sri Lankan police acted in a lazed manner in controlling the vengeance of the people of the area who were obviously frenzied by the whole crime. The very purpose of the police is to enforce law and order in the country. Not to keep their eyes closed in the face of revengeful behavior of the public or to encourage them.
It seems that the killing of suspects facing criminal charges during encounters is the new trend of the Sri Lankan police. The incident in Delgoda bore resemblance with several such encounters in the recent past namely, the Ganemulla Bollatha three murders case, the jewellery plunder in Ambalangoda and the killing of the police officers in the Meetiyagoda police station. In all these cases, the criminal suspects were shot dead in alleged encounters where they had gone with the police to show their weapons hideout and at which place they attacked the officers. How hard is it to take these suspects with their hands properly cuffed so that they can’t throw grenades at the police? Are we really to believe these excuses set forth by the Sri Lankan police?
In a way, these executions of the criminals in this manner can be justified. Knowing the procrastinating procedure of the Sri Lankan courts, the absence of death penalty in Sri Lanka and the influence of politicians in these circumstances, people would think that there is a good chance that these criminals will get away with little or no punishment at all and hence it is better to punish them in this manner. But it is just not the way a civilized society should act. Vengeance is not the answer to vengeance. It is the responsibility of the government and the authorities that a sound judicial system is in place and the convicts are punished accordingly. And the role of the police should be to make sure that law and order is maintained and the general public has faith in their judicial system.
Feel like a familiar statement? If you are Sri Lankan, you should be familiar with this. The above statement has been the excuse for several police-lead executions in the very recent past in Sri Lanka. It seems that the Sri Lankan police has assumed the role of the judicial system and is cleansing the society by eradicating the suspected criminals without giving them a fair trial.
The whole country was shocked at the news of the five murders in Delgoda last month. No person with a human heart would have approved the atrocity and would want nothing but the death penalty to the people who committed the crime. A series of incidents followed these murders. The houses of the suspects were burnt down and the two main suspects were shot to death by the police.
The question is, to what extent should we justify the actions of the police in these situations. Even though I’m so glad that the two persons who commit this brutal act are no more (assuming they are the actual murderers, based on their confession), it is just not the way a civil society should act in such a situation. It should be questioned whether we can justify the outrageous behavior of the people of the village following this event. It seemed that the Sri Lankan police acted in a lazed manner in controlling the vengeance of the people of the area who were obviously frenzied by the whole crime. The very purpose of the police is to enforce law and order in the country. Not to keep their eyes closed in the face of revengeful behavior of the public or to encourage them.
It seems that the killing of suspects facing criminal charges during encounters is the new trend of the Sri Lankan police. The incident in Delgoda bore resemblance with several such encounters in the recent past namely, the Ganemulla Bollatha three murders case, the jewellery plunder in Ambalangoda and the killing of the police officers in the Meetiyagoda police station. In all these cases, the criminal suspects were shot dead in alleged encounters where they had gone with the police to show their weapons hideout and at which place they attacked the officers. How hard is it to take these suspects with their hands properly cuffed so that they can’t throw grenades at the police? Are we really to believe these excuses set forth by the Sri Lankan police?
In a way, these executions of the criminals in this manner can be justified. Knowing the procrastinating procedure of the Sri Lankan courts, the absence of death penalty in Sri Lanka and the influence of politicians in these circumstances, people would think that there is a good chance that these criminals will get away with little or no punishment at all and hence it is better to punish them in this manner. But it is just not the way a civilized society should act. Vengeance is not the answer to vengeance. It is the responsibility of the government and the authorities that a sound judicial system is in place and the convicts are punished accordingly. And the role of the police should be to make sure that law and order is maintained and the general public has faith in their judicial system.
Again, as much as I’m happy about the destiny of these murderers I feel that if this procedure continues it will attribute to nothing but to the loss of faith in people of their protectors and their judicial system. It is time for the police to stop acting out of vengeance and show exemplary behavior to the citizens of this country that we are still a civilized nation and that we still abide by the law.
1 Comment:
Think there is a discussion going on about some thing similar here
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