Volker Turk is urging Sri Lanka to review the operation and implement a rights-based approach to combatting illicit drugs
The UN human rights agency on Friday criticised an ongoing anti-narcotics crackdown in Sri Lanka that has resulted in the arrest of over 30,000 suspects and sparked allegations of widespread abuses by the authorities.
Police in the South Asian nation have said the arrests were made since the operation code-named “Yuktiya” (Justice) in mid-December, part of a pledge to get illegal drugs off the streets by the end of June.
Volker Turk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, is urging Sri Lanka´s government to review the operation and implement a rights-based approach to combatting illicit drugs.
“Security forces have reportedly conducted raids without search warrants, detaining suspected drug sellers and users, with hundreds sent to military-run rehabilitation centres,” a spokeswoman for Turk told journalists.
People have reportedly been subjected to a number of rights violations, including unauthorised searches, arbitrary arrests and detention, ill-treatment, public strip searches, and torture.
“While drug use presents a serious challenge to society, a heavy-handed law enforcement approach is not the solution,” the spokeswoman said.
“Abuse of drugs and the factors that lead to it are first and foremost public health and social issues,” she added. “People suspected of selling or trafficking drugs are entitled to humane treatment, with full respect for due process and transparent, fair trials.”
