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Impunity remains entrenched in Lanka: Amnesty International slams Sri Lanka’s human rights record
Amnesty International last Wednesday slammed the Sri Lankan government’s human rights record noting that “impunity remained entrenched with the Sri Lankan government making no notable progress around the right to truth, justice and reparation for those affected by war”.
Amnesty’s Annual Report 2023/24 detailed how the Sri Lankan continued to oppose measures to advance accountability for the war crimes committed by the Sri Lankan military; how the economic crisis has seen a doubling of the number of people beneath the poverty line; and the government concerted efforts to curb of freedom of expression, amongst other issues.
Commenting on the proposed “truth commission”, the report details that 9 international human rights organisations have criticised the plans in September. The report goes on to state: “Given the failure of domestic commissions of inquiry to ensure accountability, some victim communities rejected the plans outright. Others highlighted the need for trust-building measures before establishing any truth commission, noting concerns around continuing surveillance and the lack of space memorialisation.”
The report also details how other domestic transitional justice mechanisms (the Office on Reparations and the Office on Missing Persons) have made no notable progress over the year according to publicly available information. “Many cases –exemplars of impunity for human rights violations – dragged on in the domestic court system, again with no notable progress”.
Amnesty also details the government’s persistent rejections of international mechanisms such as the Sri Lanka Accountability Project, which was established in 2021.
Despite Sri Lanka’s assurances to the UNHRC of the steps the government had been taking, Amnesty noted that the Sri Lankan government ‘merely noted and did not support most recommendations made during the Universal Periodic Review in March on accountability for war-time serious violations of human rights and humanitarian law.”
Commenting on the state of poverty on the island, the report highlights the World Bank’s finding that the number of people living below the poverty line has doubled since 2022.Whilst the government has introduce a new “Aswesuma” welfare benefit payment scheme, Amnesty warns that the narrow target of the programme may mean that “only approximately 1.1 of the 2 million families living below the poverty level were eligible”.
It risked excluded many of the most vulnerable including those working informal sector, on daily wage incomes, from the Malaiyaha Tamil community, others with low or precarious incomes, and those whose incomes were lost due to unemployment.
Amnesty also slammed continued efforts by the Sri Lankan government to curb freedom of expression. The report cites an incident in November were nine Tamils were arrested under Sri Lanka’s draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act for a commemoration vigil in the eastern town of Batticaloa.
The report further details the persistent use of the PTA by the Sri Lankan government despite pledges to repeal the legislation. Amnesty notes that the proposed Anti-Terrorism Act, which seeks to replace the PTA, makes minor changes but the legislation’s capacity to enable human rights violations remained.
The human rights organisation also criticised Sri Lanka’s Online Safety Bill, which the OHCHR has slammed noting that; “many sections of the Bill contain vaguely defined terms and definitions of offences which leave significant room for arbitrary and subjective interpretation and could potentially criminalize nearly all forms of legitimate expression, creating an environment that has a chilling effect on freedom of expression”.
Amnesty also criticised the arrests of social commentors for their criticism of Buddhism.
The report also referenced the many protests which took place last year adding that the Sri Lankan government sought to ban protests and frequently resorted to excessive and other unlawful force against protesters ? deaths and many injuries resulted in both countries. In a different report released by Amnesty earlier this month, it called on the international community to “urgently review cooperation with the Sri Lankan government” including the training and provision of its security forces, as it released a new report detailing how the military and police engaged in violent suppression of protests.
President Anura Kumara Disanayake expressed confidence in the substantial opportunities for innovation in our country, stating that Sri Lanka aims to pave a new path in digitalization by the year 2030.
He said that the government’s aspiration is to elevate Sri Lanka, currently not a competitor in the field of innovation, to a comparable status with other countries, emphasizing that digitalization will play a crucial role in achieving this objective.
The President highlighted the necessity of implementing significant transformations within the innovation sector to meet these goals.
These remarks were made by President Disanayake at the Innovation Island Summit – 2025, held on Thursday (20) at the ITC Ratnadipa Hotel in Colombo.
The President stated that hosting the Innovation Island Summit – 2025 in Sri Lanka signifies the growing interest and aspirations of new entrepreneurship in the country regarding innovation. He further said that that various stages of human civilization have been identified, with each new chapter being shaped by innovation.
He underscored the importance of innovation in advancing human civilization to new stages, stating that while people’s needs remain constant and the means of fulfilling those needs have changed.
The President explained that innovation drives the creation of new markets by addressing emerging needs, and that new markets emerge only when the method of fulfilling needs changes. He also noted that countries that have achieved success globally have done so by recognizing and capitalizing on these changes, with neighbouring India serving as a prime example.
President Disanayake also mentioned that the current budget prioritizes innovation and emphasized the importance of utilizing new discoveries for commercialization.
The President projected export revenue of USD 19 billion for this year, emphasizing the need for a significant transformation in the innovation sector to realize this revenue target.
He stated that creating an environment for the benefits of innovation to reach the entire population is a government responsibility, reiterating that the government’s numerous goals are intertwined with innovation.
The President also highlighted the challenges Sri Lanka faces in the global economic competition, along with the necessity for digitalization and innovation. He invited international partners and investors to come to Sri Lanka and requested that new investments be directed towards the country.
He further mentioned that a positive environment for innovation and business has already been established in the country and that we possess a skilled workforce to support this initiative
By Saman Indrajith
From June this year, mobile phone users in Sri Lanka will be able to retain their existing numbers even after switching mobile network operators, according to officials from the Ministry of Digital Economy.
The announcement was made during a meeting of the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Digital Economic Affairs held on Thursday (20).
In a statement issued on Friday, the Parliament’s Communication Division confirmed that the Ministry of Digital Economy is also constructing 50 new mobile signal towers in areas with poor network coverage to enhance connectivity.
The meeting, chaired by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, also addressed several key digital policy issues. The discussion included cryptocurrency regulation, with the President stating that a final decision on its legality in Sri Lanka would be based on recommendations from the Governor of the Central Bank.
Other topics covered during the meeting included measures to safeguard citizens’ personal data, strategies for managing emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, and discussions regarding the salaries of IT engineers.
Meanwhile, the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Digital Economic Affairs is set to hold a workshop on 10 March 2025 to brief all Members of Parliament on upcoming government programmes related to the digital economy.
By Saman Indrajith
Speaker Dr Jagath Wickramaratne informed Parliament on Friday that security-related requests made by Members of Parliament have been referred to the Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP) for appropriate action.
In a special statement, the Speaker noted that several MPs had approached him seeking enhanced security measures. He stated that the requests, which had been submitted periodically, have now been forwarded to the Acting IGP for necessary consideration.
Additionally, the Speaker announced that he has tabled the report from the Special Committee appointed to investigate complaints regarding the conduct of Jaffna District MP Dr Ramanathan Archchuna.
The Committee, chaired by the Deputy Chairperson of Committees, Hemali Weerasekara, also included Vijitha Herath and R.M. Ranjith Madduma Bandara.
The report will now be referred to the Committee on Ethics and Privileges for further deliberation.
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