The cabinet has approved a proposal submitted by President Ranil Wickramasinghe to investigate the execution of Henry Pedris in 1915 by the colonial administration of Sri Lanka at the time accusing him of rioting and treason against the government.
A three-member committee headed by retired supreme court judge Anil Gunarathne, has been appointed to probe the incident, reveal information, study relevant matters and submit a report with recommendations to cabinet in order to bring justice to his family.
“Historians have said that Henry Pedris, who was in charge of the security in Colombo, faced false accusations for his failure to stop the riots between Sinhalese and Muslims,” Cabinet Spokesman, Bandula Gunawardena said yesterday (12).
“Despite President’s Council G G Ponnambalam submitting an appeal on behalf of Henry Pedris, he was executed on July 7, 1915, under martial law, for treason.”
Gunawardena said that the execution was a result of a plan carried out by officials in the country at the time.
The body of 27-year-old Pedris was cremated at an undisclosed location following the procedure prescribed for a convicted criminal under martial law.
(economynext.com)
