RTI Commission directs Police to release information on PTA detainees

The Right to Information Commission (RTIC) has ordered Sri Lanka Police to release some crucial information pertaining detainees under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) including the number of detainees and their mental health and other conditions.

The Commission further ordered that the requested information be released before the 28th of this month. The Order further reads that in the event Police fails to provide the requested information criminal action will be instituted against it as well as their designated information officers in the Magistrate’s court.

The Commission in its Order states that it is of the view that releasing such information is beneficial to the society at large and helps develop an environment contributing to the greater good and the refusal by the Public Authority will only limit building such an environment.

This Order stems from an appeal filed before the Commission by Attorney at Law Suren D. Perera subsequent to information requests that were rejected by the Public Authority.

Information requested is under two categories. One of the detainees who are in custody under detention Orders and secondly of those who are detained from 2019 January and not yet indicted.

 Requested information categories include the number of detainees held under detention Orders, age categories of such detainees, the number of female and male detainees, number of pregnant females, number of detainees who are undergoing mental treatment, periods for which the detainees have been kept in custody and more.

In response, the Information Officer of the Police, former director of the legal division Inspector Darshana Gallage refused to release information citing section 43 of the Right to Information Act which interprets the word ‘information’ and stating that the information requested does not fall within the interpretation that is encompassed in the act, specifically under section 43.

The act interprets ‘information’ to include;

 “any material which is recorded in, in any form including records, documents, memos, emails, opinions, advices, press releases, circulars, Orders, log books, contracts, reports, papers, samples, models, correspondence, memorandum, draft legislation, book, plan, map, drawing, diagram, pictorial or graphic work, photograph, film, microfilm, sound recording, video tape, machine readable record, computer records and other documentary material, regardless of its physical form or character and any copy thereof;”

 The Appellant then forwarded an appeal to the Designated Officer who also refused the release of the information. However, on this occasion the information was refused on a different basis and not on the same stand taken by the information officer.

The Commission in its ruling points out this irregularity stating that the role of the Designated Officer is to find whether the objection or stand taken by the Information Officer is correct or not, but not to find fresh grounds to reject or not reject a request.

The Designated Officer cites one of the exemptions given in the act stating that releasing such information “would undermine the defence of the state or its territorial integrity or national security” and thereby refused to release.

However, the Order of the Commission states that the Designated Officer has failed to demonstrate how releasing of the said information will have an impact on the national security and the territorial integrity.

“In the event the detainees are released after being indicted it clearly shows the innocence of detainees and there is no impact on national security or territorial integrity when they are sent back into the society,” the Order reads.     

Accordingly in the event Sri Lanka Police fails to release the requested information by 28 October such officers of the Police department will be having to face a summary trial before the Magistrate’s court and be liable to a fine or imprisonment.

This appeal was heard and decided by the Commission Chairman (Retired) Justice Upali Abeyratne, Commission members (Retired) former President of the Court of Appeal Justice Rohini Walgama, Senior Attorney-at-Law Kishali Pinto Jayawardena and Senior Attorney-at-Law Jagath Liyanaarachchi.