23rd July, 2020, On 2021.07.03 Friday, Ms. Jude Kumar Ishalini of Diyagama, Hatton—an underaged girl employed as a domestic aide at the residence of former Minister and present Member of Parliament Mr. Rishad Bathiudeen was admitted to the Colombo National Hospital with burn injuries. She succumbed to her injuries on the 15th while receiving treatment in […]
22 Organizations Urge UN Resolution Ensuring Human Rights and Justice in Sri Lanka 22nd February 2021, Geneva, Switzerland: The UN Human Rights Council must take immediate and concrete action to prevent impunity for past abuses and address the deteriorating human rights situation in Sri Lanka, said a coalition of 22 organizations today. Highlighting recent recommendations of […]
3rd February 2021, Colombo, Sri Lanka: On 1 February, the armed forces of Myanmar (Tatmadaw), ostensibly acting on allegations of voter fraud in the general elections of 8 November 2020, detained numerous government officials, including State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, President U Win Myint, and Union Election Commission (UEC) Chair U Hla Thein, […]
December 3rd 2020, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The faith the victims of forced cremation of COVID-19 or COVID-19 suspected dead had in the highest court in Sri Lanka has been shattered. Victims and communities are now left without a recourse in Sri Lanka for the continued injustice they suffer. “We placed greater hopes in the courts. […]
June 15th 2020, Colombo, Sri Lanka: We, the undersigned from civil society express grave concern regarding the establishment of a spate of Presidential Task Forces in the last few months. Three Task Forces were appointed by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa as a response to COVID-19. One has extensive powers to direct, coordinate and monitor the delivery […]
ANFREL and six domestic election observation groups, including ANFREL members PAFFREL and CMEV, released the “COVID-19 Code of Conduct for Election Observers” ahead of the 2020 Sri Lankan parliamentary elections. This document is a joint initiative from organizations both domestic and international intending to observe the parliamentary elections of Sri Lanka. The polls were initially […]
All active election observation missions in Sri Lanka, including CMEV, have issued a joint statement urging all relevant authorities to resolve their issues regarding a new election date with the mutual understanding of not creating a constitutional crisis against the backdrop of COVID19. The joint statement points out that: It is undesirable to head into […]