International civil rights organizations have called upon the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) to maintain its oversight of Sri Lanka’s human rights situation as the Council’s 60th session approaches. During this session, the compliance of member states with international human rights treaties is reviewed annually. A coalition of groups, including Amnesty International, the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development, Human Rights Watch, and the International Commission of Jurists, has urged the renewal of the Sri Lanka accountability project overseen by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). This request highlights concerns over the Sri Lankan government’s commitment to establishing an independent prosecutorial mechanism to address human rights violations and international crimes in the country.
One of the critical issues raised by these groups is the lack of protection for victims and witnesses, alongside unresolved reconciliation efforts with the Tamil community and the continued enforcement of contentious counterterrorism laws. Such issues have repeatedly placed Sri Lanka under scrutiny, epitomized by the Committee to Protect Journalists’ plea in August for the government to cease its harassment of photojournalist Kanapathipillai Kumanan. His documentation of the Chemmani mass grave excavations has been met with government resistance, reflecting broader concerns outlined by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk. Türk’s concluding remarks emphasize failures in addressing custodial deaths, enforced disappearances, and other human rights abuses in the country.
The government’s sluggish approach toward achieving reconciliation with minority communities is another prominent concern. During the three-decade-long conflict between government forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), numerous human rights violations affected Tamil civilians. As reported by the UK-based Minority Rights Group, both sides committed abuses. Recent findings from the International Truth and Justice Project in May 2024 indicate that the oppression of Tamil civilians, including abductions and torture by security forces, persists. Human Rights Watch further highlights the sustained repression of religious minorities, including Hindus and Muslims.
The coalition of rights organizations also demands the repeal of Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Terrorism Act, which Amnesty International characterizes as “draconian.” The International Centre for Counter-Terrorism echoes this sentiment, recommending a comprehensive transitional approach that could replace the act and foster independent review and meaningful remedies.
The OHCHR was mandated by the HRC in March 2021 to monitor human rights violations, a mandate whose existence depends on renewal decisions at the forthcoming 60th session, according to legal news reports. The continued international scrutiny is seen as essential by various human rights entities and is pivotal at this juncture as Sri Lanka grapples with its complex human rights landscape.