The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka has expressed its concerns over the law enforcement’s use of tear gas, water cannons and wooden poles as a crowd control mechanism to disperse protesters over the past week. 

 Issuing a statement, the HRCSL noted that every citizen is entitled to the freedom of Assembly and expression and that this right has been exercised by different individuals and groups in the country.  

The statement further said that the Commission has initiated inquiries to ascertain if the crowd control procedures adopted by law enforcement officers recently are in line with constitutional provisions, international human rights obligations of Sri Lanka and basic principles of respecting human dignity. 

Public Security Minister Tiran Alles was expected to appear before the Commission on Monday for an inquiry over the violent crackdown by the Police on 7 and 8 March when dispersing protests held near the Universities of Colombo and Kelaniya. However, the Minister informed the HRCSL in writing that he would not appear before it.  

The Commission previously said it was optimistic that the discussion with the Minister would help adopt a mechanism to prevent the violations of fundamental human rights in future and recommend guidelines in compliance with human rights for the control of crowds during protests.

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