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completely naked and he was handcuffed crosswise behind his back. After the beatings in the
office he was brought back to the cell for a while but was threatened that he should not tell
anybody of the torture. After the ill-treatment he had blood in his urine for one week and he lost
some feeling in his feet. One of the officers who tortured him was called Nishantha, and he and
the other officers involved were still working at TID in Boosa. He reported that he is too afraid
of reprisals to file an official complaint.
30. Detainee. He was arrested in Colombo on suspicion of membership in the LTTE.
Four men in civilian clothes dragged him into a white van and did not tell him who they were.
During the arrest he was beaten by them. Three of the men held him while the fourth one
punched him in the face and on his chest and kicked him against his knees. He was brought to
TID where he was interrogated but not beaten. During his second interrogation the next day, the
officer in charge made him kneel down and beat him twice with his flat hand and his fist on his
cheeks. His family was informed the day after his arrest. The TID officers wanted him to confess
to membership of the LTTE. Eventually, he signed a statement in Sinhalese which he could not
understand. He saw a magistrate but did not speak to him. He reported that he was previously
arrested in 2001, and on that occasion, during interrogation, a plastic bag filled with petrol was
put over his head for three minutes.
31. Detainee. He was arrested by the police on suspicion of being a member of the LTTE. He
was brought to Seruwalla Police Station where he was neither interrogated nor abused. After one
day, he was transferred to Kantale Police Station where he stayed for one and a half months. For
the first three days, he was interrogated by two police officers. He was brought out of the police
station and forced to stand under a tree for two hours while he was questioned. The investigating
officer wanted to know where he had hidden weapons and when he did not say anything, the
officer became angry and took him to another building where he began to beat him. Another
officer, who served as a Tamil interpreter, did not take part in the beatings. He was handcuffed
and had to sit on the floor while the officer beat him with a squared wooden stick on the soles of
his feet and with a smaller stick on his head. He was also beaten on his abdomen. This treatment
continued in sessions over a period of three days, and he was returned to his cell in between
sessions. In June, he was transferred to Boosa, whereupon his arrival fresh interrogations into his
suspected hiding of weapons began. After he was taken to a medical officer who certified he was
in good health, TID officers began to interrogate and torture him on a regular basis. For two to
three times per week he was interrogated by two officers until September 2007. His hands were
handcuffed behind his back crosswise, he was punched in his abdomen, and his nipples were
squeezed. One of the officers stepped with his shoes on his feet, his hair was pulled and he was
slapped in the face. He was also forced to sit cross-legged while one officer stepped on his knees
and forced them to the ground. During this ordeal he was always naked. He recalls that one of
the TID officers was called Sumith. He was last abused at the end of August.
32. The Special Rapporteur recommends that prompt and independent investigations of all
allegations of torture and ill-treatment be carried out in order to bring those responsible to justice
(including the management of the institution).
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