News
Thondaman urges legal and other reforms to create a safer and more just country for our women and children
CWC leader and Water Supply and Estate Infrastructure Minister Jeevan Thondaman told Parliament that his fellow MPs engaged in politicization of rape and sexual violence against women instead of coming up with solutions.
“Politicisation of rape does not address the conditions that lead to rape or deal with its terrible aftermath,” the Minister said.
He said that the solution was to take definitive steps to solve it. First there should be comprehensive sexuality education for children and young adults – that can empower them to take control and make informed decisions on their sexuality and relationships. Second, abortion should be decriminalized so that women are empowered to make decisions on their bodies. Reports from the Health Ministry show that about 650 unsafe abortions take place every day. This means that our laws are putting the lives of 250,000 women at risk every year. Third, there should be increased judicial safety for women and children so that our justice system doesn’t penalise the very people that need its protection. Fourth, there should be speedy resolution of cases pertaining to rape and sexual violence. The average child rape case can take 7-10 years to resolve, leaving the victims in limbo and without any justice. Sri Lanka’s statistics on sexual violence against women and children are alarming.
“In every two hours a child is sexually molested, in every 90 minutes, a woman is raped. It has been found that 62% of women killed were murdered by an intimate partner, ex-partner or family member. A 2013 UN Survey on Male Sexual violence in SL showed that 15% of men interviewed admitted to having raped at least once, with the majority who admitted to rape saying they did so because they were entitled to. Twenty percent of those respondents admitted to raping for fun or out of boredom.
In this country, we have a history of safeguarding oppressors, and it is much the same with rape or sexual violence, where police tend to have more sympathy with the rapists than the victims. This is reflected in the chilling statistic that only three percent of those who admitted to rape in the above study were arrested. And, according to a 2021 University of Kelaniya study, only five percent of cases relating to women murdered between 2013 and 2017 have concluded. These figures should make us ashamed and alarmed. Which is why I am committed to support reforms to create a safer and more just country for our women and children.
The Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) yesterday demanded an immediate termination of what it called a “secretive and dangerous” defence agreement signed between Sri Lanka and India, during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 05 April visit.
Addressing a press conference at the party’s headquarters in Nugegoda, FSP Education Secretary Pubudu Jagoda described the agreement as a “betrayal of the nation” and a “crime against the people,” urging the government to invoke Article 12 of the deal and exit it with the required three months’ notice.
Jagoda said the document, which surfaced on social media after being published by a news portal, appears to be the actual agreement signed between the two countries. “The government has not denied its authenticity. That silence is telling,” he said.
Jagoda added that the agreement bears the signatures of Sri Lanka’s Defence Ministry Secretary Sampath Thuiyakontha and Indian High Commissioner Santosh Jha.
“What’s most troubling,” Jagoda warned, “is that both governments attempted to keep the agreement under wraps. Unlike the 1987 Indo-Lanka Accord, which was made public with all annexures, this agreement was hidden from the people, and even now, we don’t know how many other agreements exist between India and Sri Lanka.”
Jagoda said that a Right to Information request made on 04 April was met with a reply from the President’s Office stating that it had no copies of the agreement—raising serious concerns about transparency, even at the highest level. “One could question whether the President has seen it because his office does not have it,” Jagoda said.
The 12-clause of agreement reportedly covers areas such as exchange and training of military personnel, defence industry collaboration, classified information protection, and military medical services, including battlefield healthcare and telemedicine.
Jagoda said the definition of “classified information” in Clause 7 was alarmingly broad. “It allows India to label virtually anything as secret. Even weapons or military assets transferred under this agreement cannot be revealed—not even after the agreement ends,” he said, citing Clause 7.3.
Clause 10 prohibits either country from taking disputes to international courts or involving third-party mediators. “It’s like asking a rabbit to negotiate with a tiger,” Jagoda quipped, drawing parallels to the complications of the 1987 accord, which eventually saw Indian peacekeeping troops refusing to leave until a change in the Indian government.
Jagoda accused the NPP-led government of hypocrisy, pointing out that the JVP, the main component of the current regime, had vehemently opposed Indo-Lanka Accord in 1987. “Now they’ve gone and signed an even more dangerous deal,” he said.
Citing Clause 12, which allows either party to withdraw with three months’ notice, the FSP called on the government to act immediately to exit the pact. “We urge the people to unite and defeat these underhanded, sovereignty-eroding deals. The FSP stands ready to lead that fight,” Jagoda said.
The police yesterday arrested a group of students, including the Convener of the Inter-University Students’ Federation (IUSF), Madushan Chandradith, during a protest held by the Allied Health Science Graduates’ Union in front of the Health Ministry yesterday.
The police obtained an order from Maligakanda Magistrate’s Court, earlier in the day, to prevent protesters from invading the Colombo Hospital Square and the Health Ministry.
Inspector General of Police T.M.W. Deshabandu Tennakoon is set to face formal questioning on Monday (19 May) over serious allegations of misconduct and abuse of power, parliamentary sources said yesterday.
A special Committee appointed to investigate the claims will commence formal proceedings next week, following several rounds of preliminary discussions held within the parliamentary complex in recent weeks.
The IGP has been officially notified to appear before the Committee and is expected to face the inquiry for the first time at 2:00 PM in Committee Room No. 8.
The Committee, which met again on Thursday (15) to finalise arrangements, is investigating allegations that Tennakoon misused his official powers in a manner deemed severe and improper.
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