P. Ariyanenthiran, who contested Sri Lanka's recent presidential elections as the Tamil 'common candidate' has been summoned by Sri Lanka's Terrorism Investigation Division (TID), alongside supporters of his campaign, for interrogation by the authorities.
Rajkumar Rajeevkanth, a member of the People’s Struggle Alliance, speaking at a rally in Colombo, condemned the Sri Lankan government's continued use of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) against Tamil political figures including Ariyanenthiran. According to Rajeevkanth, the latest investigation focuses on the sources of Ariyanenthiran's campaign financing, including questions about how and from where the funds were received. Rajeevkanth pointed out the irony in these actions, noting that other political campaigns, even that of Anura Kumara Dissanayake, would have also received funding from a variety of sources including overseas without similar scrutiny.
"The Anura Kumara Dissanayake government had promised to repeal the Prevention of Terrorism Act," Rajeevkanth said. "However, just weeks after coming to power, the government has sent letters from the TID to Ariyanenthiran over election financing."
Rajeevkanth said that another individual who assisted with the campaign in Kilinochchi had received a similar query by phone, which he said signalled a form of intimidation. He highlighted that Tamil politicians and activists are frequently targeted under the PTA, creating a climate of fear and an attempt to silence dissent against the current government. The PTA, he stressed, has long been used as a tool of repression against Tamils.
"The government is using the PTA to suppress Tamil voices under the guise of anti-terrorism investigations," Rajeevkanth said, calling on the administration to justify its continued repression of Eelam Tamil voices through the use of the PTA.
Recently Human Rights Watch also echoed similar sentiments, stating that the continued to use the notorious Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) to "target perceived opponents and minority communities without credible evidence" despite repeated promises to repeal the legislation and a moratorium on its use.
The PTA allows Sri Lankan authorities to detain individuals without charge and denies due process rights. The draconian legislation has been used for decades against Tamils and Muslims.
“Sri Lanka’s extensive domestic security apparatus routinely uses baseless accusations of terrorism to target innocent people, silencing critics and stigmatizing minority communities,” HRW's deputy Asia director Meenakshi Ganguly said.
The rights group also noted that the draft bill is "designed to give the president, police, and military broad powers to detain people without evidence, to make vaguely defined forms of speech a criminal offence, and to arbitrarily ban gatherings and organizations without meaningful judicial oversight."
