Khuram Shaikh murder trial verdict to be announced this week

Khuram Shaikh

A Sri Lankan court is set to deliver its verdict on the murder trial of Rochdale Red Cross worker Khuram Shaikh this Friday.

The trial at the High Court in Colombo represents years of campaigning after Khuram Shaikh was murdered in December 2011 and his partner brutally assaulted while they were on holiday at the tourist resort of Tangalle.

Rochdale MP Simon Danczuk has visited Sri Lanka on a number of occasions to press ministers to speed up the legal process and bring the case to court after progress had repeatedly stalled. He has previously expressed concerns that the investigation was subject to political interference because the main suspect is a local politician with close ties to President Rajapaksa. Both Prince Charles and the Prime Minister, David Cameron, have also pressed the Sri Lankan authorities to investigate the case more thoroughly and raised the case directly with President Rajapaksa at last year’s Commonwealth Heads of State meeting in Colombo.

Speaking ahead of the verdict, Simon Danczuk said that Khuram’s family and campaigners all over the world expected to see Khuram’s killers finally put behind bars.
“We’ve heard very strong evidence to ensure that the cowards who killed Khuram do not escape justice,” he said. “Khuram’s work for the International Red Cross meant he was respected throughout the world. He worked in some of the worst danger zones imaginable and always put the safety of others before himself. But he was killed in cowardly circumstances by a gang of thugs in what was supposed to be an idyllic tourist resort.

“The eyes of the world are watching this case and it is important that Sri Lanka shows the international community it’s making progress in tackling human rights abuses. Khuram’s family and his partner have campaigned very hard to get to this point and they are still grieving for their loss. It’s important now that they see justice finally delivered.”