Valaichenai District court issued an order on Tuesday to extend the remand of 10 Tamil men and women arrested under the widely condemned Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) to August 13, according to JDS Lanka.
The group was arrested on May 18, for holding a vigil to mark Tamil Genocide Day and commemorate the genocide of Tamils by Sri Lankan security forces at the end of the armed conflict in 2009.
At the time of arrest, Sri Lankan Police Spokesman DIG Ajith Rohana, claimed the group was arrested for commemorating the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
Tamil civil society, activists and parliamentarians have maintained calls for the full repeal of the PTA as it permits Sri Lankan authorities to detain individuals without charge and has been linked to torture. Despite domestic and international calls for the repeal of the draconoian legislation, there has been an escalation in arbitrary arrests of Tamils and Muslims under the Rajapaska regime.
In June, the EU passed a resolution condemning Sri Lanka’s continued use of the PTA, highlighting that the legislation “contains deeply flawed provisions including enabling warrantless arrests and 18-month detentions with limited court oversight.”