Critics: Why did it take so long?

Campaigners have welcomed the decision to end the training contract with Sri Lankan police but questioned why Justice Secretary Keith Brown had not acted sooner.

Labour MSP Mercedes Villalba said: “This training was providing political cover and legitimacy to the human rights violations.

“The Justice Secretary, Keith Brown, failed to support calls for the contract to be terminated, so this development comes in spite of, not because of, his actions. There’s no point in a Justice Secretary who doesn’t stand up for human rights. Yet, we have that.

“The Scottish Government and Police Scotland should be looking at all avenues to ensure that justice is delivered for those who have suffered in Sri Lanka.”

Marian Pallister, of peace organisation Pax Christi, said Police Scotland’s announcement was a “great relief”.

She said: “We believe it is now incumbent on the UK Government to ensure that other police forces and security services withdraw training and other support for Sri Lanka given the human rights abuses that are evident there.”

Frances Harrison of the International Truth and Justice Project called on Police Scotland to now interview torture victims living in Scotland in order to bring a case before the international court.

She said: “Torture victims are overwhelmed by this wonderful news. Police Scotland would be trailblazers if they gathered the evidence available to them and brought it to the international court.

“The UK Government spent millions of pounds of tax money training the Sri Lankan police since 2010, including ironically in gender sensitivity.

“In 2015 a UN investigation named several Sri Lankan police units as perpetrating torture and using sexual violence as a part of a policy.”