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SRI LANKA
CASE N° SRI/53 - NADARAJAH RAVIRAJ

Resolution adopted unanimously by the IPU Governing Council at its 190th session
(Kampala, 5 April 2012)

The Governing Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union,

Referring to the case of Mr. Nadarajah Raviraj, a member of the Parliament of Sri Lanka who was assassinated on 10 November 2006, and to the resolution adopted at its 189th session (October 2011); referring also to the report of the on-site mission to Sri Lanka carried out by the Committee in February 2008 (CL/183/12(b)-R.2),

Taking into account the information that Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe, Special Envoy of the President of Sri Lanka for Human Rights, provided to the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians at the hearing held during the 126th IPU Assembly (April 2012),

Recalling that Mr. Raviraj, a member of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), was shot dead in the morning of 10 November 2006, along with his security officer, while travelling in his vehicle along a main road in Colombo, the gunman escaping on a motorcycle,

Recalling the following information about the investigation provided in the past by the authorities, which have repeatedly stated their commitment fully to elucidate this crime:

  • Investigations revealed that the motorcycle was sold by two brokers named Nalaka Matagaweere and Ravindra to Arul, who at the time was living at the house of S.K.T. Jayasuriya; the latter was taken into custody together with Nalaka; Jayasuriya revealed that Arul was a former Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) member; Nalaka and Jayasuriya were later released on bail as inquiries revealed that they were not in Colombo at the time of Mr. Raviraj’s assassination; arrest warrants were issued for Arul and Ravindra, who, according to the police progress report forwarded in April 2009, were strongly suspected of having gone to the areas then controlled by the LTTE;

  • A Scotland Yard team arrived in Sri Lanka on 4 January 2007; it conducted investigations and recommended that further tests be carried out; the team commended the Sri Lankan investigators for their work; according to the police report of March 2010, no real breakthrough had been possible, investigations were continuing, and regular reports were being sent to the Chief Magistrate Court Colombo;

  • Since the defeat of the LTTE in May 2009, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has attempted to trace Arul and Ravindra among the refugees from the north and has even checked 300,000 displaced people, so far to no avail; a report has been sent to the Attorney General seeking advice on further investigation, and reports from non-governmental organizations, including University Teachers for Human Rights, have been read for information about the murder, again to no avail; as regards Scotland Yard, the team took swabs of the bloodstain in the bag in which the firearm used for Mr. Raviraj’s assassination was hidden and transported, and which was found at the crime scene; the swabs were profiled by Scotland Yard and preserved for matching if and when the suspects are apprehended,
Considering that, according to the latest information provided by Minister Samarasinghe, the case was to be called next for hearing in court on 11 July 2012,
  1. Thanks Minister Samarasinghe for his cooperation;

  2. Remains deeply concerned that, five years after Mr. Raviraj was murdered in broad daylight on a main road in Colombo, those responsible have yet to be identified and held to account;

  3. Urges the authorities to inject fresh momentum into the investigation and, if need be, to re‑examine every possible lead to help advance the course of justice; reiterates its wish to ascertain what further steps they intend to take for this purpose and what advice the Attorney General may have given regarding further investigation;

  4. Recalls that Parliament, in the exercise of its oversight function, is entitled to follow an investigation, especially when it concerns a member; wishes, therefore, to ascertain the views of Parliament on taking such an initiative;

  5. Requests the Secretary General to convey this resolution to all the parties concerned;

  6. Requests the Committee to continue examining this case and to report to it at its next session, to be held during the 127th IPU Assembly (October 2012).
Note: you can download a complete electronic version of the brochure "Results of the 126th IPU Assembly and related meetings" in PDF format (file size 910 Kb approximately). This version requires Adobe Acrobat Reader, which you can download free of charge.Get Acrobat Reader

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