Legislating Courtsey On The Part Of Police Officers?

June 3, 2012

By Kishali Pinto-Jayawardena -

Kishali Pinto-Jayawardena

Amendments to Sri Lanka’s Criminal Procedure Code permitting the police to detain suspects up to forty eight hours are now apparently on their way, the justification being that the law needs to be more stringent to curb the exponential rise of crime in Sri Lanka today. Taken together with the recently gazetted Rules relating to the Appearance of Attorneys at Law at Police Stations by the Inspector General of Police (IGP) under Section 55 of the Police Ordinance, some interesting issues arise for discussion.

Increased detention of suspects

In some respects, the pending amendment to increase the period of detention may not cause much comment. The Criminal Procedure Special Provisions Act first passed in 2005 and then further extended for a period of two years in 2007, extended the period of detention of suspects up to forty-eight hours in relation to certain special offences (abetment, conspiracy, murder, culpable homicide not amounting to murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping/abducting with intent to secretly and wrongfully confine, etc.

Though the extension of this law should have been done following its lapsing, this was not effected due to an extraordinary lapse on the part of the Ministry of Justice. This resulted in confusion worse compounded in Parliament, as this columnist recalls, when the main opposition quite rightly objected to a retrospective application of the special provisions law. From all relevant newspaper reports, it appears that the currently contemplated amendment to the Criminal Procedure Code is being pushed through in consequence thereof.

This 2005/2007 Special Provisions law provided that suspects arrested and detained under its provisions shall be afforded an opportunity to consult an attorney-at-law of his choice and to communicate with any relative or friend of his choice during the period of such detention. Though the pending amendment to the Criminal Procedure Code (based on the Special Provisions Law), has not been made available to the public, it appears that this provision of legal counsel to suspects will be continued.

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