Out of the SilenceFreedom from Torture (formerly the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture) has forensically documented evidence of ongoing torture in Sri Lanka – long after the end to the civil war – in stark contrast to the Sri Lankan government’s recent claims of "zero tolerance of torture".

The UK government has a clear role to play in helping to protect people at risk of torture and to end impunity (read more below).

Sign the petition calling the UK government to:-

1. Ensure that the UK does not return individuals to a risk of torture in Sri Lanka, including by:

  • Ensuring that UK Border Agency decision-making on Sri Lanka asylum claims is adequately informed by relevant evidence of torture and other human rights abuses;
  • Instigate effective monitoring of individuals forcibly removed while serious concerns of ongoing torture remain;

2. Declare its support for an international investigation of alleged war crimes and other serious human rights violations committed during the end of conflict period, and;

3. Play a leadership role within the international community to pursue accountability for and prevention of further torture in Sri Lanka.

Many of us bear the marks of torture on our minds and bodies, but in Sri Lanka you can’t express that you’ve been tortured. If you show your scars to a doctor you risk them telling the authorities and you would likely be detained again."

~ Saarheerthan, Sri Lankan torture survivor

Freedom from Torture’s report, Out of the Silence, demonstrates that torture perpetrated by state actors, both the military and police, continues with impunity – a finding which the UN Committee Against Torture has highlighted with concern in its concluding observations on Sri Lanka recently.

The evidence documented within medico-legal reports (MLRs) for Sri Lankan asylum seekers shows that individuals are still at risk of torture, in particular Tamils with an actual or perceived association with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The torture inflicted with a wide range of methods has had devastating psychological and physical consequences, including visible scarring in many cases, which suggests impunity for perpetrators and further risks on return.

Despite these ongoing risks, the UK government continues to return people to Sri Lanka whose asylum applications have been refused. Freedom from Torture is hugely concerned that no monitoring is in place to ensure their safety and that decision-making on asylum claims by the UK Border Agency is not fully informed by the current situation in the country.

Meanwhile, accountability for alleged war crimes committed by both sides in the final phase of the conflict remains elusive, despite growing calls for an independent, international investigation, including by the UN Secretary General’s Panel of Experts on Sri Lanka. No senior civilian or military officials have faced criminal investigation or prosecution in Sri Lanka.

The Sri Lankan government’s Lessons Learned and Reconciliation Commission shows little hope of delivering justice. The UK government has stated that an independent, thorough and credible investigation is required: now is the time for the UK to step up and use its influence within the international community to make sure that impunity is broken once and for all.