| Control measures adopted by police against the recent spate of protests island-wide have once again brought into focus the issue of how much police force should be allowed against unarmed protestors.
The UNP protest against the fuel price hike in front of the Fort Railway Station last Friday saw at least a hundred-strong police contingent present including the riot police. While in this instance Police used tear gas and water cannon on the protestors, a common occurrence in most protests, in more extreme cases live ammunition was used instead of rubber bullets.
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| DIG Anura Senanayake |
SP Ajith Rohana |
Retired STF Commandant, DIG Nimal Lewke |
In May last year, 21 year-old Roshen Chanaka who took part in a protest at the Katunayake Free Trade Zone over the private sector pension scheme succumbed to gunshot injuries, after a police officer who was deployed to control the demonstration reportedly opened fire. Several others too sustained gunshot injuries.
Recently when angry fishermen took to the streets in Chilaw against the fuel price hike, on February 15, 35-year-old Antony Fernando a father of two was felled by a bullet reportedly fired by an STF personnel. Investigations into this incident continue.
A former Inspector-General of Police, Ana Seneviratne in an interview with the Sunday Times said a lack of leadership on the field was one of the main reasons for the breakdown of discipline among the forces in the face of a riotous protest.
"Riot is an action by a group of persons with a common intention that results in damage to any property. The police is the arm of the government that enforces the law therefore it is important to be ready with pre-emptive action. Water cannon should be used first, then tear gas and finally the baton," he said.
He said the police could have prevented the deaths if proper control measures had been adopted.
"Unfortunately although there are a number of officers to give orders while within office premises, there are only a few who can give orders in the field and they too are not given due recognition," he said.
Retired STF Commandant, DIG Nimal Lewke said live ammunition should not be used when confronting civilians.
| Unfortunately although there are a number of officers to give orders while within office premises, there are only a few who can give orders in the field and they too are not given due recognition." - Ana Senevirathna |
"It is the riot squad's responsibility to prevent any overflow of unlawful activities. Especially in today's global situation it is important that these protests and campaigns are handled in a responsible manner. In the Maldives, no police force was used during the recent civil campaign," he said.
Mr. Lewke said during a civil riot or protest, police officers from various police stations and divisions are brought in to control the situation and most of the time they are unaware of the chain of command.
"There is a lack of communication as police constables are brought in for special duty and police officers are brought in from different places. The voice of a leader should be heard and he should take the responsibility. At present there is no effective operation plan," he said.
Mr. Lewke said the field force unit had to be improved and they should be provided barbed wire and other materials that are used to combat civil riots
"These protests are handled in an ad-hoc manner. The riot squad should be well versed on how to handle such situations by going through case studies. Professionalism is important when handling riots and demonstrations," he said adding that the STF should not be used to control civil riots and protests. "The STF is a counter-terrorist organization and should not be used for civil riots. Their presence could however act as a warning to protestors, but they should not be allowed to use force," he said.
However, DIG of Colombo Range Anura Senanayake said the police maintain maximum restraint when controlling demonstrations.
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| High-handed action? Riot police at the scene of the UNP protest against the fuel pricehike last Friday.
Pix by Indika Handuwala and Mangala Weerasekera |
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| A routine police drill in progress |
"We first verbally warn the demonstrators, for instance not to march towards areas such as High Security Zones etc. Water cannon and tear gas are only used when they do not obey these orders," he said adding that there was an increasing trend of violence among protestors.
"In Chilaw, police recovered six petrol bombs and 80 empty glass bottles, while 60 concrete stones used to attack police during the fuel-hike protest in the Fort were also recovered. I too was too hit by a stone," he said.
DIG Senanayake said last year 121 protests were held in Colombo while for this year there have been 12 so far. "We are forced to take action if the protests turn violent and cause inconvenience to the public. But we only used water cannon and the ts tear gas which does not have any lethal ingredients as charged by certain parties. We did not even resort to baton charges,"he said.
In a 2001 case the Supreme Court defining the use of power by law enforcement officers in civil demonstrations states, "When an armed party is brought on to the scene little force must be used and as little injury caused as is consistent with dispersing the assembly and arresting and detaining the offenders."
If police are compelled to use firearms, a warning should be first given by the senior Police officer. If matters fail to subside, he has to give the order to fire. The number of rounds fired must be recorded and the senior officer has to take all responsibility, the Supreme Court further stated. |
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