Reconciliation

11 boys abducted and killed in 2008; 14 naval officers implicated in the crimes, 13 of them arrested and produced before a magistrate. Last Thursday, the 14th suspect in the case, war time Commander Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda won reprieve from arrest in the country’s highest court – probably for the duration of his trial For […]

Image: The UN Independent Expert on foreign debt and human rights, Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky in Colombo. Statement by HE Mr. A. L. A. Azeez Ambassador / Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka (28 February 2019,) after the presentation of the Report (A/HRC/40/57/Add.2) on the visit of Independent Expert to Sri Lanka from 3rd to 11th September 2018. Mr. President, […]

Image: Samantha Power speaking at the event to mark 30 years of Parliamentary Politics of Minister Mangala Samaraweera. (@MangalaLK) Full text of the speech delivered by Ambassador Samantha J Power at the event to mark 30 years of Parliamentary Politics of Minister Mangala Samaraweera. Ambassador Samantha Power. Celebration of Minister Mangala Samaraweera, Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference […]

Image from Social Media. Heralding youth as catalyst for change is not a new phenomenon be it globally or in Sri Lanka. While it is perhaps one of the most overused phrases in history it does warrant merit, as the adage goes there’s no smoke without fire. Nevertheless, the connotation of youth for change in […]

27 February 2019 Human Rights Council 40th session: draft resolution Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka The Human Rights Council, PP1 Reaffirming the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, PP2 Guided by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenants on Human Rights and other relevant instruments, […]

(26 February 2019 / Daily Mirror) Megapolis and Western Development Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka said he submitted a Cabinet memorandum asking for general amnesty to all those who are accused of war crimes – both from the armed forces and the LTTE. In an interview with Daily Mirror, he said it was inappropriate to single out […]

Image: UNHRC, Geneva. (c) S.Deshapriya. Sri Lanka: Need for time-bound plan for implementation of commitments to the Human Rights Council February 25, 2019 Your Excellency,l We write to seek your support in ensuring that the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC or Council) adopts a resolution at this 40th session to maintain scrutiny of Sri Lanka’s […]

For several years the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) has troubled Human Rights (HR) activists as one of the most draconian pieces of Legislation on the Statute Books of the country. The Legislation which was hurriedly passed by the Legislature, included many provisions that were clearly problematic from the perspective of the Fundamental Rights of […]

Holding a press conference in Colombo yesterday (20 Feb)  three retired service commanders, Air Chief Marshal Roshan Goonetileke), Admiral Tisara Samarasinghe and General Daya Ratnayake said that the war winning military was being penalised in terms of the Geneva Resolution co-sponsored by the government, in Oct 2015.  In their speeches that requested the requested that the President […]

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Read the full report as a PDF:Sri Lanka Briefing Note No 14 Feb. 2019 In the last two months of 2018, Sri Lanka witnessed a political coup led by its President. The coup was short lived. The attempt to overthrow the democratically elected Government and bring back the authoritarian ruler, who was rejected […]

(Daily FT 13.02.19) Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) Chairman Prof. G.L. Peiris yesterday said that if the party manages to form a government in the future, they would present a resolution to the United Nations Human Right Council (UNHRC) to counter the resolution that Sri Lanka co-sponsored in 2015. The Government is preparing to make […]

Image: Sri Lankan Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera. Meera Srinivasan/The Hindu. Debts amounting to LKR 1,400 million to be written off; interest rates capped. With a partial debt write off, a cap on lending rates of microfinance companies and an imminent master plan for economic development, the Sri Lankan government has sought to revive the war-affected […]

Image: UK Ambassador to UN, Julian Braithwaite at the Human Rights Council organisational meeting yesterday. ( photo credit @JulianUNWTO) UK Statement:Human Rights Council organisational meeting held on 11 Feb 2019. I would like to refer to 4 initiatives which the UK will present as part of core groups. These are three resolutions and one joint statement. Firstly, […]

Time is running out for the Sri Lankan authorities to deliver on its 2015 commitments to truth, justice, reparations and guarantees of non-recurrence, Amnesty International warned today in a new briefing. As the tenth anniversary of the end of Sri Lanka’s internal conflict looms in May, progress on UN Human Rights Council Resolution 30/1 has […]

BY MANJULA FERNANDO. In an interview with the Sunday Observer Dr.Suren Raghawan, the first ever Northern Province Tamil Governor, spells out his aims and objectives to serve the people in the region and build bridges not only to send the farming produce from the North over to the South, but bring together the youth of […]

image: Michelle Bachelet Jeria with UNSG. Jaffna/30 January 2019. Her Excellency Michelle Bachelet Jeria The High Commissioner for Human Rights Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Palais Wilson 52 rue des Pa quis CH-1201 Geneva, Switzerland. Your Excellency, Re: Your Report to the UNHRC in March 2019 on Sri Lanka We […]

“We haven’t finished excavating yet. We will continue until we get to what we call a bone-free margin, to rule out any more bones,” says W.R.A.S. Rajapaksa (Below), Consultant Judicial Medical Officer at Mannar District General Hospital.   | Photo Credit: Picasa Meera Srinivasan . The recent discovery of a mass grave in Mannar town in Sri […]

The media is busy reporting on what various individuals say about the draft Constitution, but don’t look at what draft itself says. The media is intent on reporting deliberately false and misleading news regarding the Constitution. There are many forces in the South that are hoping to prevent a new Constitution being passed, and the […]

27th December, 2018 To: President Maithripala Sirisena Cc. Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe & Leaders of Political Parties Keep the Presidential Promise – release land by 31st December 2018 On the 4th of October 2018, The Presidential Media Division reported that “President Maithripala Sirisena instructed the authorities to complete the process of releasing the lands in […]

The UK Foreign Office responding to the petition “Refer Sri Lanka to International Criminal Court, if it continues to fail to implement its commitment made to the UNHRC Res. [A/HRC/RES/30/1] by March 2019”. signed by over 10,000 British citizens said that the UK is committed to supporting the Sri Lankan Government’s efforts to improve the […]

Image: Left groups wants Sirisena to be prosecuted for political coup he staged. (c)S.Deshapriya.. As a year of political upheaval and economic stagnation is winding down, Sri Lanka is entering into an uncertain 2019. Politics is as toxic as it has ever been in recent times. The illwill between President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister […]

Image: A civil society initiative, Rise Up has mobilized citizens against the #CoupLK. Sri Lanka’s President Maithripala Sirisena was hailed as Sri Lanka’s Mandela by his supporters in January 2015. He is now being called Sri Lanka’s Mugabe after his recent actions plunged the country into a chaotic constitutional crisis of unprecedented gravity. On Friday […]

Lieutenant Commander G. Laksiri, a key witness in a case regarding the abduction and disappearance of 11 youths in an alleged Navy abduction racket, has been threatened by six navy officers, including the Chief of Defence Staff Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne, Police Spokesperson SSP Ruwan Gunasekara confirmed. The victim is one of the main witnesses in […]

New York/10 November 2018. Statement attributable to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General on developments in Sri Lanka. The Secretary-General learned with concern of President Maithripala Sirisena’s decision to dissolve Sri Lanka’s parliament and move to new parliamentary elections on 5 January 2019. The Secretary-General underlines the utmost importance of respecting democratic processes and institutions and resolving differences in accordance […]

November 9, 2018. WASHINGTON—Representative Eliot L. Engel, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee; Rep. Dina Titus, Co-Chair of the Sri Lanka Caucus; and Rep. David Price, Ranking Member of the House Democracy Partnership today urged Sri Lanka to uphold its commitment to democratic governance and reopen the country’s Parliament. In a letter to President Maithripala […]

 LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI/AFP/Getty Images:  A Demonstration in Colombo on November 4, 2018. The U.S. and Japan have both paused their respective projects in Sri Lanka amid concerns about democracy, according to the country’s ousted Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. The European Union said it may consider revoking Colombo’s trade privileges if the government doesn’t continue progress on […]

The Elders express grave concern at the situation in Sri Lanka following President Maithripala Sirisena’s unconstitutional decision to dismiss Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and suspend Parliament. “President Sirisena must stand by his past commitments to deliver peace, justice and reconciliation to his people – all of which can only be achieved by strict adherence to […]

Image: Mahinda Rajapaksa speaks at UN headquarters in New York, September 22, 2010.  © 2010 Reuters (New York) – Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena’s decision on October 26, 2018, to appoint former President Mahinda Rajapaksa as prime minister has raised fears about a return to past abusive practices in the country, Human Rights Watch said today. The sudden announcement to […]

Image: Sri Lankan police stand guard at a protest calling for the release of Tamil activists being held under the Prevention of Terrorism Act in Colombo, Sri Lanka, October 14, 2015.  © 2015 Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP/Getty Images Protections Against Torture, But Reforms Fall Short. (Colombo) – Sri Lanka’s draft counterterrorism law significantly improves upon the current, abusive […]

Image: Fallen “LTTE  war heroes ” cemetery in 2004. The Sri Lankan State’s erasure of the complex history and experiences of the war manifest in varying ways across the country; military monuments that showcase a single victory narrative, the construction of Buddhist statues in Tamil-majority areas and the blatantly incorrect signboards at several of these locations. Then, there is […]