(COLOMBO) –
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is concerned that the authorities in Sri Lanka are adopting a heavily security-based response to the country’s drug problem, instead of public health policies grounded in human rights.
A staggering 29,000 people have reportedly been arrested on drug-related matters since December 17, with allegations that some have been subjected to ill-treatment and torture.
An official for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said security forces have reportedly conducted raids without search warrants, detaining suspected drug sellers and users, with hundreds sent to military-run rehabilitation centres.
During and after these operations, people are reported to have been subjected to a number of violations, including unauthorized searches, arbitrary arrests and detention, ill-treatment, torture, and strip searches in public. Lawyers acting for those detained have alleged that they have faced intimidation from police officers.
Earlier several human rights groups and even lawyers had lambasted the ongoing so-called anti-drug drive led by a controversial police officer packing a criminal background.
