SRI LANKA: AHRC calls for adequate financial

allocation in the Budget 2016, to end corruption,

fraud and waste

September 4, 2015

In response to the calls for proposals from the public for the
2016 Budget, by the Ministry of Finance, Sri Lanka, the Asian Human Rights

Commission (AHRC) submitted proposals calling for adequate financial allocation

towards the modernisation of the policing institutions, the judicial institutions, the
creation of an effective agency to control bribery and corruption, and for the effective
implementation of the new witness protection law. The AHRC in its proposal stressed
the need to give serious attention by policy makers towards making adequate financial
allocations towards these institutions, in the Budget 2016, if the Government is to
ensure good governance, end corruption, fraud and waste.
The AHRC states;
We do not wish to labour to demonstrate the extent to which the Sri
Lankan policing system has suffered not only during the previous
government but also since the adoption of the 1978 Constitution
through which the Executive Presidential system which the new
President has vowed to dismantle, brought in politicisation of all
institutions including law enforcement agencies. The question that
arises for the preparation of the Budget is the manner in which to
provide the necessary financial resources to remedy such destructive
past precedents. The saying to put your money where your mouth is,
directly applies in this instance. For no amount of rhetoric can undo
corruption, fraud and the waste unless law enforcement agencies are
given the necessary resources to function properly in fulfilling their
obligations.
The full text of the AHRC Proposals is as follows;
4th September 2015
Mr. K D N Ranjith Asoka
Director
Department of Trade and Policy
Ministry of Finance
The Secretariat
Colombo 01
Sri Lanka
Dear Mr K D N Ranjith Asoka,
Response of the Asian Human Rights Commission to the Call for Proposals in regard
to the formulation of the 2016 Budget - issued by the Ministry of Finance, Sri Lanka
In response to the calls for proposals from the public for the 2016 Budget by the
Ministry of Finance, Sri Lanka we are submitting to you the following proposals
deemed as essential to ensure good governance and increase in the efficiency of the
state apparatus as a consequence of which development of the productivity and the
efficiency of the Sri Lankan economy may be better enabled.
Making adequate financial allocation to modernising the policing institution

We note that the statement of Government Policy presented by His Excellency the
President on 1st September 2015 in the Parliament has clearly emphasized the
commitment of the State to end corruption, waste and fraud. Practically speaking, this
objective can be met only if there is effective law enforcement in Sri Lanka. To end
corruption fraud and waste, there should be a financial commitment to significantly
improve the law enforcement capacity of the government.
When it was campaigning for power during the presidential elections of January 2015
and the general election of August 2015, the present government exposed the manner
in which Sri Lanka's legal system has been undermined and the extent to which the
policing, the prosecution and judicial systems have been destabilised by the previous
government due to its neglect of good governance.
We do not wish to labour to demonstrate the extent to which the Sri Lankan policing
system has suffered not only during the previous government but also since the
adoption of the 1978 Constitution through which the Executive Presidential system
which the new President has vowed to dismantle, brought in politicisation of all
institutions including law enforcement agencies. The question that arises for the
preparation of the Budget is the manner in which to provide the necessary financial
resources to remedy such destructive past precedents. The saying to put your money
where your mouth is, directly applies in this instance. For no amount of rhetoric can
undo corruption, fraud and the waste unless law enforcement agencies are given the
necessary resources to function properly in fulfilling their obligations.
The Sri Lankan policing service provides a useful example of the finances that are
needed in order that it can become a modernised policing force with both human as
well as other material resources which would allow them to function efficiently. It is
acknowledged that the Sri Lankan policing service still remains basically in its colonial
mode and it has even being pushed back further due to the political climate since the
1970s up till the present times. In all functional democracies the world over, new
models of policing which are suitable for democracies have been developed. In the
United Kingdom, this process started as way back as in 1832 when the Metropolitan
policing system, which was based on the notion of policing by consent, was
introduced. The very notion of policing underwent a radical change. It was that process
which has also been initiated in other countries like the United States and most
European countries which has enabled these nations to achieve the levels of stability
that they experience now. It is this stability that brings in investments and sustains
their economies. The failure and instability of law enforcement in the country is a
fundamental obstacle for countries like Sri Lanka in order to attract direly needed
investments for its economy. When His Excellency the President talks about the need
to end, corruption, fraud and waste, he is in fact acknowledging how these factors
have brought about the undermining of social order and as a result, are undermining
the possibilities for economic growth.
All observers agree that policemen in Sri Lanka are poorly paid, and poorly equipped
and very poorly trained. Improved law enforcement requires a radical change in all
those aspects. Above all, the investigation of crime needs to be done only by skilled

investigators who have been given the opportunities to be educated in regard to the
various branches of the forensic sciences and other skills such as efficient
communication skills that are a fundamental part of any modern institution.
Computerisation of all documentation beginning with the recording of complaints and
other evidence could within a short time bring great relief to all the citizens who resort
to seek relief through the legal process. The actual cost of such a computerisation
process may be comparatively small but the benefits to the system as well as to the
citizen are enormous. In modern society, corruption and crime are sophisticated
affairs. Unless the law enforcement agencies are superior in their sophistication, they
would become victims of all kinds of manipulations with the result that the present
unhappy situation will continue.
Therefore, it is essential to estimate the budget needed for the modernisation of the
policing system. We wish to emphasize if the needed budget is not provided, the
Finance Ministry would have to take the responsibility for the failure to implement
perhaps the most important policy declared in the Governments policy statement
which is to end corruption, fraud and waste. We hope the Ministry of Finance would
understand the gravity of this situation and make a clear commitment by reserving
adequate financial allocation for this purpose in the forthcoming Budget.
We note further that for many decades, the Sri Lanka Police has been seriously
exposed to criticism in international and local forums due to widespread use of torture
and ill treatment by the police. Well documented records show that the victims are
almost always from the poorer communities. A police force that resorts to such
widespread use of torture indicates that it is poorly equipped to engage in the task of
law enforcement. The use of torture and ill treatment is an indication of an outdated
and a primitive policing system. Modern systems which relies on more technical
means of collection of evidence does not need to resort to torture and ill treatment.
Besides, the available statistics show that almost 80 percent of the victims of torture
are innocent persons. In countries such as Sri Lanka, torture is effectively used as a
means of obtaining bribes. Therefore, the Governments commitment to end corruption
and fraud implies also the ending of the use of torture and ill-treatment. From the point
of view of enhancing the prestige of the law enforcement agencies in the international
forums as well as enhancing public confidence in these institutions, the providing of
adequate budgetary allocations for the proper functioning of the policing system would
go a long way.
Financial allocations to uplift the judicial institutions in Sri Lanka
One important critique featured in the opposition platform against the previous
government, related to the enormous damage done to Sri Lankas judicial institutions.
In fact, over a long period of time, a conscientious citizenry had expressed their
dismay about the manner in which judicial institutions have been attacked and
neglected. Starving the institutions by refusal to provide adequate budgets became a
feature in Sri Lanka since former President J R Jayawardena adopted such a policy. In
order to enjoy excessive powers, the Executive presidential system needed to

undermine judicial independence. Such undermining resulted in making the judicial

system virtually dysfunctional. His Excellency the President and the Prime Minister
would have no difficulty in understanding that good governance is impossible if the
judicial institutions remain in this same dysfunctional state. Much needs to be done to
resuscitate the judicial institutions in Sri Lanka. One of the factors that will determine
whether such a change would happen is state commitment towards making the
necessary financial resources available.
Such resources are needed for the improvement of the capacity of judges, the
improvement of the infrastructure including improvement of the communication
facilities to be in in keeping with modern court rooms with the use of computers,
recording instruments, well-maintained websites and the like.
The delays that are imbedded in the system of adjudication have come to a point
where citizens are discouraged from accessing the judicial process to find redress for
their grievances. This affects not only the citizens but also the government. A
government in power has a justifiable fear that manipulation of the possibilities for
delay in the adjudication process could be used as a means of sabotage of initiatives
that it may want to pursue. When governments have such fears it may result in such
governments finding ways to circumvent the legal process in the pursuit of their
projects. That creates a lawless situation and such a situation is extremely detrimental
to the encouragement of investments. Delay in adjudication is therefore a serious
onslaught on the political system, the social system as well as the economic system
itself. Therefore, any government that wishes to follow and enlightened policy in a
realistic manner, would not dare to ignore such a negative situation that exists within
the judicial system due to the scandalous situation of the prevalent delays. What is
important from the point of view of the Budget is that such delays in adjudication
cannot be addressed in any significant manner without making the necessary financial
allocations to end such delays. This means providing financial resources for the
increase of judicial officers as well as other human resources, the improvement of
infrastructure, along with other investments such as in regard to creating adequate
space for court rooms, and also improving the communication structure. To maintain a
judicial system that is as dysfunctional as what exists now, is a colossal waste. His
Excellency the President has promised to end waste. If that is to be a practically
realisable promise, then it is essential that the investments as mentioned on ending
such delays in adjudication should not be postponed. We therefore urge that making of
such budgetary allocations should be a priority in the forthcoming Budget.
Budgetary allocations for creating an effective agency to control corruption
The Commission against Bribery and Corruption in Sri Lanka is built on an outdated
model. No efficient performance can be expected so long as this model is not
abandoned in favour of a modern system as is available in many countries in the world
where corruption has been effectively controlled. Modern corruption investigators are
equipped with knowledge in many fields that are connected to the ways which produce
corruption. They are also equipped in modern forensic sciences which enables

successful investigations. They possess the necessary equipment for efficiently

carrying out their functions. They are also adequately paid, so that they would not
have to resort to other means of improving their incomes to maintain their families.
Given the vociferousness of the Government when in the opposition, in exposing the
corrupt nature of the previous government, citizens have a right to expect that practical
and tangible measures will be adopted in order to discard the outdated model on
which the Commission against Bribery and Corruption has been designed and that a
more modern system will be installed as soon as possible. Nothing would discourage
the electorate more, than to see that the governments claim to end corruption is
confined to mere rhetoric only. To go beyond rhetoric implies the provision of adequate
budgetary allocations to establish a modern Bribery and Corruption Control agency
which can act efficiently and speedily.
It is encouraging to note that His Excellency the President himself has publicly
declared his intention to replace the existing model of the Commission with a more
modern system. We hope that in the new Budget, the citizen will be able to see the
financial commitment in regard to the realisation of this much needed measure.
Making budgetary allocation for the effective implementation of the new witness
protection law
After many years of agitation, it is encouraging to see the adoption of a new law on
witness protection during the period of the interim government. Now the question is as
to whether the law will remain merely a paper law or whether there will be a genuine
attempt to implement its provisions. This again implies making the necessary
budgetary allocations in order to ensure that various aspects of a witness protection
scheme would be supported by budgetary allocations. Effective witness protection
requires the presence of officers who have capacities needed to implement this
particular law. Ensuring that these officers have the financial and other means to carry
out their duties is essential. Witness protection also requires the allocation of various
funds on behalf of the victims themselves in situations of dislocation and other
contexts. Of particular importance are the facilities provided for particularly vulnerable
segments of society such as women and children who are in need of such witness
protection. We hope that the Government will make the needed budgetary allocation
for this purpose in order to demonstrate its commitment to practical implementation of
this law.
We expect that the highlighted concerns would receive serious attention by policy
makers during the forthcoming formulation of the 2016 Budget. We attach herewith for
your convenience, a letter previously written to the then Minister of Financewhen he
was first appointed to this post under the interim government dated 13 January 2015.
Yours Sincerely,

Basil Fernando
Right Livelihood Laureate
Director, Policy and Programmes
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