Sri Lankan claims police fail to help in face of threats
A Sri Lankan man claims he was forced by Hong Kong police to help with a murder investigation, but ignored after his actions angered underworld figures in his country.
Jaya, whose real name cannot be revealed, is claiming asylum with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on the basis that he cannot return to Sri Lanka because he is being targeted by gangsters.
The man, whose home town is Kandy, said he used to travel the world as a yacht master and came to Hong Kong as a visitor with his wife and son, now aged six, in December 2002.
'I lost my passport and overstayed on my 30-day visa while waiting for a new one,' he said.
'In May 2003, the Hong Kong police came to ask me about a Sri Lankan lady who was murdered in Yuen Long and told me to assist or else they would charge me with overstaying.'
Jaya says they issued him with a document allowing him to stay in Hong Kong and promised to pay him for his assistance.