College of Forensic Pathologists of Sri Lanka Annual Academic Sessions today

Today must be a day of excitement for the College of Forensic Pathologists of Sri Lanka as the most important event of the College, the Annual Scientific Sessions will be held today at the Auditorium of the Sri Lanka Medical Association Colombo 7. The Minister of Disaster Management and Human rights Mahinda Samarasinghe will be the chief guest and Secretary, Ministry of Health Dr. Athula Kahandaliyanage, the Guest of Honour.

The main office-bearers of the College are, its President Dr. Ananda Samarasekara, Chief Consultant Judicial Medical Officer Colombo, President Elect Dr. P.R. Ruwanpura, Consultant Judicial Medical Officer, Galle and Vice President Dr. Nilukshi Abeyasinghe, Head Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo. Dr. Ananda Samarasekara, was a founder member who toiled hard to see the birth and growth of the College eight years ago in 2000. However he had to take up an assignment in 2004 as the Head of the Forensic Division of the Department of Justice of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) from 2004 to 2007 as the chief international forensic pathologist and a senior grade international civil list officer where he was responsible for setting up of the new Medico legal system for Kosovo.

Presentations

Judging from the carefully planned programme, it is evident that the two secretaries Dr. P.A.S. Edirisinghe and Dr. A Dayapala along with the organising committee and the Council have put in much hard work to plan out an intellectually rewarding scientific sessions. The programme includes two symposia, two plenary lectures, several free papers and poster presentations. The symposium on 'Current global trends in forensic medical examinations of alleged rape victims for assisting administration of Justice' will be chaired by Justice Shiranee Thilakwardhana, Judge of the Supreme Court. The speakers include Palitha Fernando PC., Additional Solicitor General, Mr. D.P. Kumarasinghe PC., Former Additional Solicitor General, Dr. Ananda Samarasekera, Chief JMO, Colombo and Dr. Channa Perera, Consultant JMO, District General Hospital Negombo.

The participants of the sessions are not limited to the forensic pathologists. Lawyers, forensic scientists and the senior police officers also will be participating in this event. One glance at the programme will reveal that forensic pathologists interact with the Judiciary, Attorney General's Department, Government Analyst's Department and the Police for their academic exchanges as well as during their routine work. The resource persons and the chair for the symposium on 'Meeting current legal requirement in Drunken Driving' will be mainly legal and police professionals. The symposium will be chaired by Justice Ranjith Silva, Judge of the Court of Appeal. The speakers will be Sarath Jayamanne, Deputy Solicitor General, Lucky Peiris SSP, Director Traffic Police and Dr. Ajith Tennakoon, Additional Consultant JMO, Colombo.

A topic that needs much attention in Sri Lanka as well as globally, 'Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in victims of sexual abuse, torture and other forms of battering' will be addressed by Dr. Lalin Fernando, Consultant Psychiatrist, Teaching Hospital Ragama. Forensic Medicine is increasingly used to resolve some relevant civil disputes. Realising this need, the Council has invited W. Dayaratne, Attorney at law, President of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka to deliver a plenary lecture on 'Better utilisation of forensic medicine in civil suits'.

The free papers to be presented are on interesting and topical issues. Attempted illegal abortions, adolescent sexual activities, responsibility of doctors towards abused elders, need for more action on child abuse and three-wheeler accidents are some of the papers. A vast array of topics will be covered in the 25 poster presentations. Some of the topics include, death of a young girl in a bathtub, death due to self manual strangulation, a case of nail gun suicide, a case of a newborn, killed and buried by its mother, police battery leading to muscle necrosis and renal failure and accidental deaths during work.

Examination

Forensic pathologists play a role in the examination of detainees and reporting on their injuries or medical fitness to stand trial. A poster presentation titled 'study on terrorist suspects at Terrorist Investigation Division (TID) Boossa' will attract much attention.

Bite mark evidence is used as evidence of identity in countries with advanced medico-legal systems. Sri Lanka is still in its infancy with regard to this field. A poster on 'the best practice in bite mark analysis for Sri Lanka' is encouraging.

Forensic pathologists sometimes have to give opinions whether death was due to trauma, natural disease, or natural disease aggravated by trauma. The topic, 'Death of an octogenarian during husking a coconut - What caused the death?' must surely arouse the curiosity of the participants.

Forensic pathology is an intriguing field. The medical opinions expressed in courts of law often play a crucial role in the outcome of the case. The prime duty of the forensic pathologist is to assist courts in the many medical questions that may arise in criminal trials and sometimes in civil trials. In Sri Lanka, this specialty is not limited to examination of dead bodies. Specialists in Forensic Medicine generally known as the Judicial Medical officers also examine victims of rape, torture, assault and child abuse. In Sri Lanka, there are no qualified and experienced Forensic Anthropologists. The task of examination of skeletons and giving opinions about their identity also is the responsibility of the Judicial medical officer. Thus these doctors have dedicated their careers to assist in the criminal justice process. May the College of Forensic Pathologists go from strength to strength as its members interchange their ideas and experiences to further the cause of justice in Sri Lanka.