The near military precision of the murder of five individuals in the Beliatta area in Tangalle, yesterday (21) morning raises many red flags for law and order in Sri Lanka. 

Firstly, it points to the Sri Lanka Police Department’s ill-advised focus on the dragnet style “Yukthiya” anti-crime operation, being ineffective to addressing the higher tiers of organised crime in Sri Lanka. Proponents of “Yukthiya” often quote the colossal number of low-level suspects that are netted each day as a measure of success. Such a number of suspects can only yield drug abusers, warrant holders and low-level drug peddlers. However, such retail crime fighting – dragnet tactics do not net the kingpins. We are yet to see any notable drug baron being arrested. Could it be that the mass arrest tactics employed by the Police is more theatrical for a disgruntled public to consume, over effective crime fighting? Yesterday’s broad  daylight shooting of five is a clear signal that the Police’s approach is not yielding the right results. The recent spate of shootings points to an increase in gun crime.

Five individuals, some suspected to have links to organised crime, were gunned down by armed men who were most certainly professionals. Four persons were killed at the scene, while another person who was admitted to the Tangalle Base Hospital with gunshot wounds later succumbed to his injuries. It is suspected that two assailants used two Type-56 assault rifles to murder the five individuals. One of the victims was Ape Jana Bala Pakshaya (Our Power of People Party) Leader Saman Perera, who had been on his way to appear before Courts. The Police have pledged numerous resources and “six teams” of Policemen to get to the bottom of the multiple homicide. 

The second red flag is that the incident happened in the South of the island, where there has been an ongoing Police operation with the Special Task Force being deployed in strength, for over a year, due to 2023’s lengthy string of gun-crime-related murders. Therefore, the approach of the law enforcement agencies have clearly not acted as a deterrent, nor effectively addressed the gun crime issue.

Third, and more concerning is the involvement of armed forces personnel and ex-forces personnel as gunmen for hire to the organised crime world. The phenomenon is nothing new to Sri Lanka and other parts of the world. However, the continued employment of ex-military personnel, and the recent development of armed forces personnel, who are in service being used for contract killings points to an eroded command and control of the armed forces, and ineffective tactics by law enforcement. Sources in law enforcement and the security establishment indicate that there have been personnel who are in service, that have been employed as guns for hire in the dark and murky world of  organised crime. It is suspected that the “shot callers” for these “hits” issue “contracts” for such killings while being based overseas. It is no secret that a large number of armed forces personnel have become “absent” or absent-without-leave over the last two years. Some estimate the number at around 17,000–19,000. Given the economic conditions that are prevailing, it is little surprise that trained soldiers, without employment, are vulnerable to be recruited for crime. Long standing issues of demobilisation policies, and mechanism to ensure ex-armed forces personnel’s employment prospects, may have played into the hands of organised criminal groups, as seen in South America.     

Given the continued level of gun crime which has prevailed, the reality that there is an abundance of small arms which are in circulation in the island, and trained gunmen being plentiful, it is clear that the current tactics employed by law enforcement agencies, and that the thinking of senior law enforcement officials are ineffective.      

With an election year in the making, political parties beginning their election campaigns, and Sri Lanka only recovering from a year of unprecedented political turmoil and economic crisis, the prevalent gun crime, and its increasing audacity should be a key concern for the State and the public. 

To ensure stability and economic recovery, the Government must move swiftly to recalibrate the current law enforcement tactics, and enact robust mechanisms to ensure effective demobilisation and employability of armed forces personnel. Let’s hope that the Government acts quickly, so that there is no room for the services and skill sets of vulnerable ex-service, or in-service personnel to be exploited by domestic and foreign elements who may want to disrupt Sri Lanka’s economic recovery and political stability.