sri lanka's commissions of inquiry - Law & Society Trust

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aware through public meetings, posters, leaflets and the media, of the purpose of the TRC which was to put together a complete picture of all the serious human rights violations that took place against South Africans between March 1960 and December 1993. It began its work in December 1995 and was mandated to run until December 1997. Then again, the experiences of the Greensboro Truth Commission of the USA show how community initiatives can also pave the way to successful investigation and at times implementation, of reparation and reconciliation programs. The Greensboro Commission was established in June 2004 as a civil society initiative in North America to investigate racial killings by the Ku Klux Klan and the American Nazi Party in 1979. The Commission undertook documentary research and also conducted 3 two-day public hearings, conducted over two hundred interviews and examined official records. The Commission presented its report to the Greensboro community in 2006, naming those responsible and recommending institutional reforms, formal apologies, restitution methods and a more representative method of selecting jurors. The responsibility of implementing these recommendations has been passed onto more than fifty civic, religious and community groups 295 . See also for example the Guatemalan mechanism for reconciliation called Recovery of the Historic Memory (REMHI) 296 . Established in 1995 and functioning to date, REMHI was established by the Catholic Church. Its mandate was to seek reconciliation and healing as opposed to justice as perceived in the criminal justice sense. Its structure is inspiring; four phases consisting of sensitisation, compilation, dissemination and analysis. Almost seven thousand interviews with 295. United States of America- The Greensboro Truth Commission, CSVR ibid n. 283 available at http://www.justiceinperspective.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id =73&Itemid=152 296. Guatemala- Recovery of the Historic Memory (REMHI), CSVR ibidn. n. 283, available at http://www.justiceinperspective.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6 6&Itemid=141 173
victims were conducted on the thirty six year old civil war which displaced one million persons and took the lives of two hundred thousand. Two days after the publication of the final report, Bishop Gerardi, leader of the REMHI was murdered. Three high ranking military officers and the Bishop’s personal assistant were convicted for the murder. One of the most controversial Commissions of Inquiry, during the proceedings of which, the deaths of the one judge, two defence lawyers and five other court officials occurred, was the Iraq Special Tribunal (since 2005, the Iraqi Higher Criminal Court (IHCC). Established in December 2003 by law by the Iraqi Governing Council, the IHCC was mandated to investigate war crimes, genocide and crimes againt humanity committed since 1968. The IHCC tried and convicted former President of Iraq, Saddam Hussein, who was later executed. The proceedings were criticized by international human rights monitors including Human Rights Watch. Accusations relating to abuse of due process included the application of a lower evidence threshold for conviction than ‘beyond reasonable doubt.’ 297 . Some of these experiences are instructive in terms of what reconciliation mechanisms can achieve if properly constituted and effectively executed. However, these histories also illustrate the dangers of summary justice meted out by special tribunals and the furtherance of the trauma of victims that such defective processes of accountability can contribute to. As much as the imperatives of restorative justice should underlie our thinking in the post war period, Sri Lanka needs to bring about reforms to the criminal justice system, establish a good witness protection system, ensure effective prosecutions of perpetrators of human rights abuses and encourage the funtioning of a sensitive and effective judicial and legal system. These should remain priorities for this country and the people. 297. Iraq- the Iraqi Higher Criminal Court, CSVR ibid n. 283, available at http://www. justiceinperspective.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=61&Itemid=1 14 174
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A LEGACY TO REMEMBER; SRI LANKA’S
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DEDICATION For all the named and un
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Table of Contents Abbreviations ...
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Returned detainees ................
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CGR CRM CSU CTB DDC DIG DIU DNA DPP
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NSSP OIC O Level P.C. PCIIRP PLOTE
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Preface Sri Lanka has constituted C
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xviii
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It comprises summaries of the final
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PART 1 REPORTS OF THE COMMISSIONS E
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BRIEF STATEMENT OF FACTS: During th
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2. PRESIDENTIAL COMMISSION OF INQUI
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violence by the UNP and their allie
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The Commission’s perspective mirr
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(c) whether any action if any, agai
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SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS: Althoug
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yet occurred, thus suggesting that
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The differences in the mandate may
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5. SRI LANKA’S COMMISSIONS OF INQ
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However, when the President was ask
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5.1.4 The Timeframe Under Review Co
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Commissions used standard complaint
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Justice does not simply mean the pu
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REPORT TITLE : (a) whether any pers
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There appears to be very little pro
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5.3 COMMISSION OF INQUIRY INTO THE
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BRIEF STATEMENT OF FACTS: The Commi
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These two problems unless handled w
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REPORT TITLE : (b) the evidence ava
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egarding certain army camps. Includ
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separate cover the list of names of
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in the said Provinces. The cases in
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commenced on the respective dates,
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BRIEF STATEMENT OF FACTS: The All I
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the liability of non-state armed gr
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Led by Deputy Inspector General T.V
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killings and human rights violation
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BRIEF STATEMENT OF FACTS: On 25th O
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SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS: Recomme
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(c) the nature and extent of the da
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other sources, including many that
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10 OTHER MECHANISMS 10.1. MINISTRY
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Can the Board of Investigation acco
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suggestive of a pattern of reprisal
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All the circumstances pertaining to
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and the LTTE were unsuccessful. Spe
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INVESTIGATIONS CATEGORY OF REC RECO
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The investigations into the persons
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104. Not implemented. 105. Not adhe
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General The Commission feels that o
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Principles of procedural fairness i
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Recognise criminal liability of off
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If any perpetrator is alleged to ha
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Habeas Corpus Adverse finding in a
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Amnesty An amnesty be given to witn
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Magistrate’s Court - Special Divi
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PUNITIVE MEASURES CATEGORY OF REC F
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Human rights records of members of
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(v) A written record of such inform
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Detention Inspector General of Poli
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Magistrates be empowered to require
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The Prison Rules to apply to all de
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Emergency Regulations The utilizati
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LEGAL REFORM CATEGORY OF REC RECOMM
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Law Reform Article 17 and 126 of th
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RELIEF AND REHABILITATION CATEGORY
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Page 146 and 147: Though providing relief to those wh
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Page 150 and 151: Emotional Rehabilitation Death Cert
Page 152 and 153: Special Mechanisms Advisory Service
Page 154 and 155: SPECIFIC ACTORS/ GROUPS CATEGORY OF
Page 156 and 157: MISCELLANEOUS CATEGORY OF REC RECOM
Page 158 and 159: That each of the complaints not com
Page 160 and 161: TABLE OF RECOMMENDATIONS OF OTHER C
Page 162 and 163: REPORT ON INCIDENTS WHICH TOOK PLAC
Page 164 and 165: (6) Economic stagnation and unemplo
Page 166 and 167: Whatever may be the rule in this is
Page 168 and 169: Finally, I would recommend that the
Page 170 and 171: REPORT OF THE PRESIDENTIAL COMMISSI
Page 172 and 173: REPORT OF UNLAWFUL DETENTION AND TO
Page 174 and 175: It would be appropriate that, Repre
Page 176 and 177: Ample evidence has been elicited at
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Page 180 and 181: Security In view of the experience
Page 182 and 183: Non-governmental Organisations Evid
Page 184 and 185: LEGAL PROCEEDINGS Prosecutions The
Page 186 and 187: ACTORS Vetting The establishment of
Page 188 and 189: The Argentinean Comisión Nacional
Page 190 and 191: the disappeared 291 and erection of
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