BASL tells IGP, Health Services DG quarantine should not be used as a punishment

The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) on Saturday expressed its grave concern over the arrest and quarantine of peaceful protesters has stressed that authorities should not use quarantine as a punishment or mode of detention.

“Quarantining necessarily relates to a person who has contracted the disease or is suspected to have contracted the disease. Clearly, quarantine is a health precaution and should not be used as a punishment or mode of detention,” BASL told the Director General of Health Services and the Inspector General of Police (IGP) in a letter.

During the past few days, the Sri Lanka Police has carried out a number of arrests of persons engaged in peaceful protests on different issues and produced them before courts of law. The protesters including Buddhist monks and elderly have forcibly been taken to quarantine centres.

The Police headquarters announced on 6 July that public protests and rallies will be banned, claiming to be on the instructions of the Director General of Health Services that public protests and rallies should not be held until further notice as there is a risk of the COVID-19 spreading due to such activities where masses will gather.

The BASL said it has carefully perused the health guidelines issued by the Director General of Health Services and the said guidelines, while permitting several indoor and outdoor activities including operation of spas, supermarkets and restaurants and liquor shops, have not listed public protests or outdoor meetings as prohibited activities.

“However, at a time the Director General of Health Services has thought it fit to ease restrictions previously imposed, the BASL sees no reasonable cause whatsoever for the Police to act in a heavy-handed manner when dealing with protesters,” the lawyers’ association said.

The BASL requested the Inspector General of Police to direct his officers to refrain from arresting and detaining persons who are exercising their peaceful right to protest.

The BASL called upon the Director General of Health Services not to allow the health guidelines to be abused in a manner which has a chilling effect on the freedom to dissent and to ensure that health regulations and guidelines are used only for the purpose they were promulgated for i.e. to curb the spread of COVID-19.