United Nations welcome Office of Missing Persons publishing the lists of missing and disappeared persons

UN Resident Coordinator of Sri Lanka Hanaa Singer welcomed the decision of the Office on Missing Persons (OMP) to publish a list of complaints and information regarding missing and disappeared persons received by the OMP. 

Singer tweeted, "Families grieving for their loved ones for too long deserve answers. The UN welcomes the publication by the @ompsrilanka of the list of complaints of the  #missing and  #disappeared. It is a key step towards a comprehensive list and providing answers to families." 

The list will be made available at the OMP Head Office in Colombo and its Regional Offices in Batticaloa, Jaffna, Mannar and Matara, the OMP said.

The Sunday Times published the following details inter alia. 

The details included in the List were obtained from i) complaints received directly by the OMP; ii) complaints obtained by the former Ministry of National Integration and Reconciliation from District Secretariats and forwarded to the OMP; and iii) lists of Missing in Action personnel provided by the armed forces at the request of the OMP.

The List released contains information provided by persons regarding missing and disappeared persons residing in all districts, apart from Batticaloa which has the largest numbers of complaints and will be released soon.

It also contains the following information i) a reference number assigned by the OMP; ii) the name of the missing or disappeared person in English and in Sinhala or Tamil; iii) the date that the person went missing or were disappeared; and iv) the district in which the missing or disappeared person last resided.

The Sunday Times introduced the OMP as follows: 

Persons who went missing or were disappeared in connection with the conflict, political unrest or civil disturbances or as an enforced disappearance; and personnel of the armed forces or police who have been identified as missing in action fall within the OMP’s mandate, as per section 27 of the Office on Missing Persons (Establishment, Administration and Discharge of Functions) Act, No. 14 of 2016 (the Act). The OMP’s primary mandate to search for and clarify the fate and whereabouts of missing or disappeared persons is not limited to a specific period, community or region.

COVID-19 and heart patient Shani Abesekara transported 500 miles within 48 hours

While social media in Sri Lanka raised suspicions on foul play and life threat behind the actions taken regarding SSP Shani Abesekara, latest reports say he is being transferred from Polonnaruwa to Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH) in Colombo. 

The former Director of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is despised by the present government and he was arrested four months ago. The charges against him are related to illegal possession of firearms. There are suspicions on fabricated evidence related to the case but when a case is filed under Firearms Ordinance in Sri Lanka, the suspect has to stay in remand for a long time until bail is granted. 

Sri Lanka Young Journalists' Association started a petition to Commissioner General of Prisons Sri Lanka and 6 others seeking the safety for Superintendent of Police Shani Abesekara who is suffering from COVID-19 while detained in prison. 

The petition addresses Commissioner General of Prisons Sri Lanka Chandana Wickramaratne, Inspector General of Police - Sri Lanka, Dappula De Livera Attorney General, Human Rights Commission, Director-General of Health, State Minister of Prison Reforms and Prisoners' Rehabilitation Minister of Public Security also. 

Shani Abesekara was transferred from Mahara prison to Welikada prison claiming he had contracted COVID-19. On November 26th, he was transferred to Gallella quarantine centre in Polonnaruwa which has a low level of facilities. He was transferred to Welikanda hospital due to a heart attack last night. Bringing him back to Colombo means back to back transport of a patient over 500 kilometres on roads unnecessarily within 48 hours.

The online petition says that SP Shani Abesekara is an official who supervised investigations on controversial cases like the assassination of school student Vidya in Jaffna, double murder at Angulana, Royal Park murder, suicide attack against Defense Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa at Piththala Junction, Easter Sunday attack, President Maithripala Sirisena assassination attempt and murder of Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra. 

Sign the petition (language Sinhala) >>

Sri Lanka government mobilizes public field officials to monitor home quarantine

Sri Lanka government has designed a system of public field officials to monitor the home quarantine. 

So far, the home quarantine was monitored and administered by Public Health Inspectors and the police. People who undergo quarantine lack official support unless the neighbours help them. Previously, the society was afraid of the epidemic and the persons who were under home quarantine had to face harassment in some instances. However, now home quarantine is common and over 100,000 persons are undergoing it at the moment.  

The government has mobilised village-level field officers including Grama Niladhari, Samurdhi Development Officers, Agro Research and Production Officers, Economic Development Officers, Family Health Officers, Public Health Inspectors and police in the village level committees to monitor the home quarantine.

They will have to monitor home quarantine on a roaster basis, according to the government circular and attend to privacy, security and issues like special requirements of elders and persons with disabilities. 

A mentally-handicapped person committed suicide a few weeks ago when he was isolated in the house after his caretaker mother was taken to the hospital because of COVID-19. Public Health Inspectors were blamed for not caring for the requirements of the mentally handicapped person but the officials said they had been overloaded with work. 

The suicide of this mentally-handicapped person in Kahathuduwa and some of the deaths at home could be saved if such a mechanism was available.

Beware! Don't avoid PCRs - police media spokesman

Sri Lanka police media spokesman DIG Ajith Rohana warned today to the persons who ignore summons for PCR tests, especially in isolated areas. 

He said that police had reports about the persons who had avoided PCR tests which were prescribed to them by the health authorities.  

The police media spokesman said that persons who avoid prescribed PCR tests could be penalized under the quarantine regulations. 

Our sources from some isolated areas in Colombo city said that some people had run away from the health officials who came for random PCR tests.

Sarath Weerasekara sworn in as Minister of Public Security of Sri Lanka

Arch Sinhala nationalist politician, former senior naval officer Sarath Weerasekara was sworn in as the cabinet Minister of  Public Security of Sri Lanka. 

Rear Admiral Sarath Weerasekara, RSP, VSV, USP, MP holds the post of State Minister of Provincial Councils and Local Government also. 

Under an extraordinary Gazette notification dated November 20, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa established two new cabinet Ministries and Public Security was one of them. The other is the Ministry of Technology. 

Ministry of Public Security will be responsible for four institutions, namely, Police department, Civil Security department, Police Training College and the Multi-Purpose Development Task Force.

Police were previously trusted to the state Ministry of Internal Security, Home Affairs and Disaster Management held by President's elder brother Chamal Rajapaksa. His State Ministry was renamed today as State Defence, Home Affairs and Disaster Management and he was also sworn in the new title.

Sarath Weerasekara was a leader of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's think tank Viyath Maga (The way of the Intellectuals). He elected to parliament in the 2020 August election achieving over 328,000 preferential votes, a number far ahead of the preferential votes gained by government and nationalist stalwart Wimal Weerawansa.

He first elected to parliament in 2010. In 2015, he was the only MP in the parliament to vote against the 19th amendment to the constitution.

Sarath Weerasekara is a film director too and directed Gamani in 2011. 

ADB grants loan to Sri Lanka to help SMEs

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Sri Lankan government signed a 165 million U.S. dollars loan agreement Wednesday to provide immediate financing support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This loan agreement will also provide long-term financing to underserved SMEs, including businesses led by women and tea smallholders, a statement from ADB in Sri Lanka said.

The agreement was signed by the Secretary of Ministry of Finance S. R. Attygalle, and ADB Sri Lanka Resident Mission Country Director Chen Chen.ars loan agreement Wednesday to provide immediate financing support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This loan agreement will also provide long-term financing to underserved SMEs, including businesses led by women and tea smallholders, a statement from ADB in Sri Lanka said.

The agreement was signed by the Secretary of Ministry of Finance S. R. Attygalle, and ADB Sri Lanka Resident Mission Country Director Chen Chen. (Xinhuanet - Read the full report here)

Exorbitant prices for COVID-19 coffins in Sri Lanka; protest the rackets behind COVID-19 funerals

Sri Lanka Minister of Health Pavithra Wanniarachchi said that the government would support the people who could not bear expenses for the cremation of COVID-19 deaths. She said that a family member of a deceased bears the cost for a coffin. 

Answering a question by Opposition MP Mujibar Rahuman regarding charging Rs. 58,000 at IDH hospital for a coffin, Minister Wanniarachchi said that the government would help the people who had no money to spend on the cremation via donors. 

However, Rs. 58,000 is an exorbitant charge for a simple funeral package in Sri Lanka and people suspect corruption related to COVID-19 cremations.

Meanwhile, spokesman of Frontline Socialist Party (FSP), Pubudu Jayagoda demanded the government to use the COVID-19 Fund for the cremation of the dead bodies of the COVID-19 deceased. He further urged people to protest the rackets behind COVID-19 funerals.