The Case of VM and Meeting Sri Lanka’s International Obligations
Star As Sri Lanka marks the end of a long and bloody civil war 14 years on, the legacy of the brutal past remains unaddressed and continues to haunt the country. The…
Transitional Justice
Geneva Resolutions on Sri Lanka – Past and Future
“How many more years should we come to Geneva?” Sandya Ekneligoda, wife of disappeared journalist, at “informal” consultation on UNHRC resolution on Sri Lanka, in Geneva, 16th Sept. 2022 Among the many international…
The Luggage of Pain
“Son, this bag belonged to my daughter. I use her bag to try and find her. This bag contains all the documents. It’s now very old and has started to tear in…
Moving Towards True Reconciliation
In May this year, a Sri Lankan living in Australia was seen tearing up a flyer on the Tamil genocide commemorations at a #GotaGoHome protest. He said, “Do you think there was…
Desmond Tutu: The Man Who Revived the Moral Universe
Archbishop Desmond Tutu who passed away this week will be counted among the great human beings who contributed to the political transformation of his own country and a person who revolutionised the…
The Role of the Public in Fighting Racial Nationalism and Religious Extremism
It is not strange to Sri Lanka that race, religion and culture are continuously exploited by politicians to maintain their voter base and to secure their seat in governance. It is a…
Tamil Tigers: Unfulfilled Promises of Feminism and Liberation
The Sri Lankan government’s Disarmament, Demobilisation, and Reintegration (DDR) program has invested in bridging former fighters’ transition from wartime to peacetime, but many aspects of the DDR program continued to pose problems…
Sowing the Seeds of Conflict: Statement by UN Officials and Independent Experts
Former UN officials and independent experts call on the international community to take immediate steps towards justice and accountability to end Sri Lanka’s cycles of violence. The recently released report on Sri…
Sri Lanka: Government Suffocating Dissent and Obstructing Justice for Historic Crimes
Amnesty International Press Release: The Sri Lankan Government has launched a renewed crackdown on dissent that is severely curtailing civil society freedom and obstructing efforts to deliver justice for conflict-era crimes under…
Pattani Razeek’s Abduction and Killing – An 11 Year Wait for Justice
On 11 February 2010, Pattani Razeek, a former Grama Niladhari (Village Official), a former Managing Trustee of the Community Trust Fund (CTF) and an Executive Committee Member of the Asian Forum for…
HRC46: Not for Reform But for Respite
Why do Sri Lankan human rights advocates repeatedly place their trust in an imperfect and highly politicised inter-state human rights mechanism year after year? For many of us working in the domain…
Reconciliation in Practice
Our country is ethnically, religiously and linguistically diverse and our survival depends on equal treatment. Discrimination and violence against Tamils led to civil war and displacement. After the 2019 terrorist attacks, the…
We Will Not Forget
We will not forget Mullivaikkal, the shot, the strafed, the scissored, and the cluster-bombed. We will not forget holes in roofs, holes in water tanks, holes in heads. We will not…
Too Polarized to Reconcile? The Struggle for Transitional Justice in Sri Lanka
In Sri Lanka, the challenge to achieve transitional justice lies not in the process alone but also in coming to terms with the ultimate goal. In a post-war context, what is the…
Sri Lanka and the UN: Retreating from Human Rights and Democracy
Concern is growing, at home and internationally, about increasing unwillingness among leaders – especially the president – to accept checks on the power exercised over the people of Sri Lanka. “I am…
