A Fundamental Rights petition was filed in the Supreme Court yesterday seeking a declaration that the fundamental rights of the people of this country are being violated by the imposition of Emergency Regulations by the President under the Public Security Ordinance.
This petition seeks an order quashing the two gazette notifications issued imposing the emergency regulations and an interim order restraining them from acting on the said emergency regulations bearing 2022/01.
The petition was filed by the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission’s former Commissioner Ambiga Satkunanathan through Attorney Lilanthi de Silva.
The Petition has cited the Attorney General on behalf of the President, the Attorney General, Secretary to the President Gamini Senarath, Secretary to the President Saman Ekanayake and Defence Ministry Secretary Kamal Gunaratne as the respondents.
The petition says that the President had acted on July 17 to impose Emergency Regulations under the Public Security Ordinance. It shows that gazette notices 2288/07 and 2289/07 have been issued announcing those regulations.
The petition seeks a ruling that the imposition of the regulations violates a number of fundamental rights, including the right to equal protection of the law, the right not to be subjected to cruel torture, the right to freedom of assembly and the right to freedom of expression. The petitioner points out that the imposition of those regulations is an unnecessary transfer of power to the armed forces and the police and undermines the power of the Parliament and the judiciary.
The closest example was the attack on unarmed protesters on July 22 and the grabbing of journalists’ equipment and the deletion storage. Therefore, the petition has requested the court to declare that the imposition of these regulations violates the fundamental rights guaranteed by provisions 10, 11, 12(1), 12(4), 13(1), 13(2), 13(3), 13(4), 13(5) and 14(1) of the Constitution. The petitioner seeks an order suspending the operation of the said regulations. Also, the petition has requested that an order be issued preventing the President or the authorized officers from imposing further emergency laws and regulations.
