News

US accuses Sri Lanka of undermining the rule of law

24 Jun, 2021

The United States (US) today accused Sri Lanka of undermining the rule of law with the release of convicted murderer Duminda Silva.

The US?Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Alaina B. Teplitz said that while the US welcomes the early release of prisoners arrested under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), the pardoning of Duminda Silva undermines the rule of law.

“We welcome the early release of PTA prisoners, but the pardon of Duminda Silva, whose conviction the Supreme Court upheld in 2018, undermines rule of law. Accountability and equal access to justice are fundamental to the UN SDGs to which the GoSL has committed,” the US Ambassador tweeted.

Duminda Silva was granted a presidential pardon today.

The Prisons Department said that it had received the documentation from the President?s Office to free Duminda Silva on a presidential pardon.

As a result Duminda Silva was set free today on a presidential pardon.

Duminda Silva was convicted over the murder of?Presidential Advisor Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra in 2011.

The Prisons Department also freed 93 prisoners on a presidential pardon.

The Prisons Department said that the inmates released included 16 former LTTE cadres who had been detained under the PTA. (Colombo Gazette)

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