Death of Wishma Sandamali

In this Sinhala name, the surname is Rathnayake Liyanage.
Wishma Sandamali
Born
Rathnayake Liyanage Wishma Sandamali

(1987-12-05)December 5, 1987
Elpitiya, Sri Lanka[1]
DiedMarch 6, 2021(2021-03-06) (aged 33)
Minato-ku, Nagoya, Japan
Other namesWishma Rathnayake

Rathnayake Liyanage Wishma Sandamali[a] (Sinhala: රත්නායක ලියනගේ විශ්මා සඳමාලි; December 5, 1987 – March 6, 2021) was a Sri Lankan woman who died in custody at an immigration detention facility in Nagoya, Japan, after her requests for provisional release and adequate medical care were denied. Japanese authorities detained Wishma in August 2020 for overstaying her visa, which was discovered after she reported experiencing domestic violence.

Wishma was the 17th person to die in Japanese immigration detention since 2007.[8] Her death prompted renewed criticism of Japan's strict immigration control, which accepted only 0.4% of asylum applications in 2019.[9] Prosecutors have dropped charges against immigration officials. A civil lawsuit against the Japanese government is ongoing.

  1. ^ a b Jayaratne, Chandima (March 20, 2021). ජපන් සංක්‍රමණික කඳවුරක අභිරහස් ලෙස මිය ගිය විශ්මා. Silumina (in Sinhala). Archived from the original on June 25, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference kyodo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Sim, Walter (April 24, 2021). "A Sri Lankan's tragic death in Japan casts a harsh spotlight on controversial refugee system". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on February 1, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
  4. ^ Amnesty International (2022). Amnesty International Report 2021/22: The State of the World's Human Rights (PDF). p. 214. ISBN 978-0-86210-505-1. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 17, 2022.
  5. ^ Dooley, Ben; Ueno, Hisako (May 18, 2021). "Japan Is Shaken After a Detainee, Wasting Away, Dies Alone in Her Cell". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 21, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
  6. ^ Ueno, Hisako; Dooley, Ben (August 10, 2021). "Her Death Shook Japan. It May Not Shift Refugee Rules". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 15, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
  7. ^ Jozuka, Emiko (December 5, 2021). "Her dream to teach English in Japan ended with a lesson for the country". CNN. Archived from the original on April 16, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
  8. ^ "Sisters question 'final' report on death of detainee from Sri Lanka". The Asahi Shimbun. August 11, 2021. Archived from the original on August 13, 2021. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
  9. ^ "Japan withdraws immigration bill after death of Sri Lankan sparks criticism". Reuters. May 19, 2021. Archived from the original on May 19, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2022.


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