Demand Genuine Justice for Sri Lanka’s Easter Attack Victims & Stop Political Persecution
To:
– The Attorney General of Sri Lanka
-The Minister of Public Security
-The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL)
-The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
-The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention
We are a global coalition of concerned citizens, and human rights advocates demanding an immediate end to the unlawful, indefinite detention of Retired Major General Suresh Sallay. He has now been held by Sri Lanka’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for over 90 days under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) without any official criminal charges or indictments filed against him.
The 2019 Easter Sunday bombings were a global tragedy. They claimed the lives of 279 innocent people, including four United States citizens, and left dozens of nationals from various countries dead or severely wounded. The international community has a direct stake in ensuring true justice is served.
However, the current domestic investigation is actively delaying justice by ignoring established international findings:
The Case is Already Solved by International Intelligence: The current probe ignores the exhaustive investigations conducted by international anti-terror authorities, including the U.S. FBI. In 2020, based on concrete evidence, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California charged the actual perpetrators, explicitly identifying them as part of an international ISIS-affiliated network.
Reliance on Discredited Sources: The current domestic restructuring relies heavily on a witness who currently has an active, open arrest warrant against him by a Sri Lankan Magistrate’s Court for severe criminal offenses. Using a fugitive to frame a decorated military officer undermines the entire justice system.
Severe Conflicts of Interest: The current investigations are being led by individuals who were previously cited by the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) and the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) for their own negligence in failing to prevent the attacks. Allowing compromised individuals to lead this probe destroys its impartiality.
A Politically Motivated Delay: By reopening the case under a speculative narrative that contradicts global intelligence, authorities are using Major General Sallay as a political scapegoat. This does not bring the real terrorists to justice; it only distracts the public and delays closure for the victims.
Keeping a citizen locked up indefinitely on suspicion alone is a direct violation of fundamental human rights. Compounding this injustice are deeply alarming reports from his legal defense team detailing his rapidly declining health and alleging that he has been subjected to severe mistreatment and torture while in CID custody. Torture violates Article 11 of the Sri Lankan Constitution and international law. It cannot be tolerated under the guise of an investigative delay.
We appeal to both domestic authorities and international human rights bodies to demand:
1 Immediate Action: File formal criminal charges in an open court immediately based on concrete evidence, or grant his unconditional release.
2 Humanitarian Access: Halt all forms of physical and psychological mistreatment and grant immediate access to independent medical experts.
3 Rule of Law: Stop the political weaponization of detention laws, remove investigators with glaring conflicts of interest, and respect the comprehensive conclusions already reached by international anti-terrorist authorities.
No citizen should be subjected to indefinite detention and abuse to satisfy a political narrative.
We urge the international community especially citizens of nations whose people were killed or wounded in the blasts to sign this petition.
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