Police Extortion - Fabricated Charges and Lawsuits (True Prisons - Part 3)

" Abeygunwardena and his family refused to pay the police the money for the false fines. The police filed the fabricated charges and after their arrest, both Abeygunwardena and his wife were sent to remand prison. Abeygunwardena was sent to the H ward in the Galle prison."

by Harshi C. Perera

(October 26, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Abeygunawardena is the father of two children and resides in Baddegama, Galle. He and his child used to sell illicit liquor but have since stopped, and now are law-abiding citizens. But recently the police threatened to fabricate new charges for illicit liquor sales against him and demanded that Abeygunawardena and his children must pay them Rs. 10,000/= or face serious consequences.

Abeygunwardena and his family refused to pay the police the money for the false fines. The police filed the fabricated charges and after their arrest, both Abeygunwardena and his wife were sent to remand prison. Abeygunwardena was sent to the H ward in the Galle prison.

Overcrowding in the H ward is rampant and the prisoners have very little space in which to sleep and survive. When the prisoners are locked up in the H ward, the police beat them. All of the detainees are forced to share only 8 buckets of water with which to bathe. If they run out of water, the police beat them. The officers force the detainees to do heavy work, including cleaning out the toilet pits.

The sanitation facilities in the H ward are very poor, and the toilets extremely dirty. The meals were inedible because of the lack of chilies, salt and spice. Because of the horrible condition of the prison, the pre-trial detainees often get sick and are stricken with skin diseases – but there is not enough medicine for the sick, and when the prisoners ask for more medicine the guards verbally assault them.

The majority of the H ward detainees are stuck in remand prison because they are unable to find a surety bail. Most cannot even afford to pay a small fine to get out. At night, many detainees take drugs and law-abiding citizens like Abeygunawardena cannot get away or separate himself from the law-breakers.

Mr. Abeygunawardena was in the prison for 14 days.