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Judgment on asylum seekers tomorrow
View(s):The Court of Appeal will tomorrow deliver judgment that will decide the fate of hundreds of Pakistani and Afghan asylum seekers in Sri Lanka.
Court heard arguments and counterarguments, consequent to a writ application filed by Aneela Imran, a Pakistani woman seeking asylum in Sri Lanka.
She filed the case following a government crackdown on Pakistani and Afghan asylum seekers and the deportation of some 200 Pakistanis despite protests from the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. More than 1500 asylum seekers, largely Pakistanis, are at present in Sri Lanka.
In her petition, Mr. Imran said they fled Pakistan and were seeking asylum in Sri Lanka because their lives were in danger in Pakistan. She claimed that Christians, Ahmadi Muslims and Shiite Muslims were facing persecution in Pakistan and cited a recent incident where two girls from a minority community were set on fire by a mob representing the majority community.
Ms. Imran said Sri Lanka had signed a memorandum of understanding with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees to provide shelter to asylum seekers and urged court to direct the government to grant them asylum in terms of Sri Lanka’s international commitments.
She cited the Immigration Controller, the External Affairs Minister, the secretaries to the Ministries of External Affairs, Human Rights, Defence and the Attorney General as respondents.
Deputy Solicitor General Janak Silva said Sri Lanka had not signed any agreement with the UN to grant refuge to asylum seekers, but there were procedures to follow before decisions were taken.
He said some of the asylum seekers were suffering from malaria and if they were given asylum and granted free movement they would spread the disease in Sri Lanka which had successfully eradicated the disease.
Judge Upali Abeyratne reserved order for September 1 (tomorrow).