Methodist Church Sri Lanka Retired President Bishop issues open letter to Manohari Sallay

Methodist Church Sri Lanka Retired President Bishop Rev. Asiri P. Perera has issued an open letter to Manohary Sallay, the wife of former State Intelligence Service (SIS) Director Suresh Sallay who has been detained for over 100 days under the Prevention of Terrorism Act due to his alleged involvement with the devastating 2019 Easter Sunday terror attack. Following are excerpts of the open letter. 

“As the wife of Suresh Sallay, your feelings and thoughts are real, and I do not interfere with your right to express them. A spouse’s loyalty is natural. Yet, I appeal to your conscience to reflect carefully on your public declaration that “Suresh is an innocent man suffering for no reason.”(18 June Daily Mirror

Points to consider

1 Due process matters

Innocence or guilt is not determined by declarations but by the legal and judicial process.

By insisting on innocence before proceedings conclude, are you not undermining the very system that protects justice for all citizens?

2. Public perception

Many citizens have already questioned the validity of such a statement.

Does it not risk appearing as though you are dismissing the voices of victims and the seriousness of ongoing investigations?

3. Political echoes

Your language resembles that of certain disgruntled politicians who, burdened by their own wrongful acts, now speak of “revenge” and “persecution.”

Could it be that they are using you as a pawn to campaign for their agendas, rather than allowing truth to emerge through fair inquiry?

4. Impact on investigations

By pressing for changes in interrogating officers or procedures, do you realise the injustice this does to the integrity of investigations?

Shouldn’t the priority be to let trained officers pursue truth without interference, so that justice is not compromised?

5. Mask and transparency

In hospitals or on public roads, wearing a mask is understandable for health reasons.

But when you make daily statements to the media while masked, it does not help credibility. If you want the public to hear you and take you seriously, why hide your face?

Does this not suggest that certain truths are being withheld? And is your husband not doing the same by withholding the full truth from the public?

6. Spiritual care during interrogation

While family visits are permitted daily and lawyers meet weekly, why not also seek permission from court to allow a clergy person from your husband’s own faith tradition to visit him?

Such pastoral presence could help him serenely reflect on inner turmoil, confront pricking guilt, and seek spiritual solace.

His refusal of food and water may not be a noble “fast unto death,” but rather a sign of unresolved spiritual and psychological conflict — a despair that makes death seem easier than facing truth.

Yet, none of our religions encourage death as an escape. They call us instead to repentance, reconciliation, and healing.

7. Moral responsibility

If your husband is indeed innocent, the courts will vindicate him.

But if guilt is proven, will your public defense not appear as complicity in shielding wrongdoing?

Closing appeal

Mrs. Sallay, your loyalty as a wife is understandable. Yet, loyalty must not blind us to justice. Sri Lanka has suffered enough from hidden guilt, political manipulation, and denial of responsibility. The nation needs truth, not premature declarations.

Let the courts speak. Let justice take its course. And let spiritual care be part of the journey, so that even in interrogation, conscience may awaken and healing may begin.”