Healing Trauma Through Art: A Personal Journey
When Ajantha Ranaweera was ten years old, his brother who was in the army went missing in action. Several years later, he was declared dead. There were no remains. On that day in…
justice
Proposed Amendment to Criminal Code is a Grave Setback for Human Rights
The proposed Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Bill to amend the Code of Criminal Procedure Act No. 15 of 1979 will open up a Pandora’s box of serious abuses. In essence what…
Saving GSP+ Requires Genuine Progress on Human Rights
The Sri Lankan government has pledged to scale back its violations of the human rights in order to protect a valuable trade deal with the European Union (EU). Although ministers continue to…
Creating National (In)security: Prevention of Terrorism Act and the Death Penalty
Today is the World Day Against the Death Penalty Today, when globally the call for the abolition of the death penalty is renewed and its inhumane and cruel nature is highlighted, we…
Democracy Under the Rule of No Law
Once again, the country is in a state of emergency. This time, the President has proclaimed emergency ostensibly to ensure the public security and well-being and maintenance of supplies and services essential…
A Monk and a Poet
Rights Watch Is it the bruised that should be accused? For painting the target on their forehead? For writing lyrics that make your blood sing, Then arrest the mothers, whose lamenting For…
The Joyful Activist: The Lasting Legacy of Kamla Bhasin
We mourn the loss of Kamla Bhasin, feminist activist, writer, poet, mentor and friend who left us on September 25. Kamla has been a core part of influencing and collaborating with feminist…
PTA – A License for Prolonged Detention of Innocents
Mr. Nadesu Kuganathan surrendered to the army in the last phase of the war in 2009 and released after rehabilitation in 2013 after four years. But after three months, he was re-arrested…
The Sordid Tale of the Captive Elephant Industry and Legitimation of Wildlife Crime
Not long after the dust had settled following the government’s long war with Tamil separatism and terror, news filtered in of the kidnapping of baby elephants from the wild. Some dry zone national parks…
Sri Lanka in Quicksand at UN Human Rights Council
As the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) meets for its 48th session, the dire situation in Sri Lanka is under international scrutiny. Amidst ongoing concerns, work has begun on holding the…
Who Wants the Death Penalty?
In 2018 the former President of Sri Lanka, influenced by Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s ‘war on drugs’ policy, attempted to resume executions for people convicted of drug trafficking. The President’s move reignited…
Sunila Abeysekera: A Key Actor in the Global Violence Against Women Movement
I thought I would talk about Sunila’s involvement in the seminal moments of the international violence against women movement. Given the violence that has engulfed the world today, this may be a…
Confronting the State on Disappearances
August 30 is marked across much of the world as the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances. For the families and the friends of the disappeared and human rights groups…
Structural Sexism in the Police Force
In October 2020, Bimshani Jasin Arachchi was appointed as Sri Lanka’s first female Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG). Six months later, she was removed from her duties by a three-bench panel…
Fighting the War on Drugs the Wrong Way
This article is a summary of my report Broken System: Drug Control, Detention and Treatment of People who Use Drugs in Sri Lanka published by Harm Reduction International, which discusses both the…