Climate Justice
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Modern Concepts of Disaster Management: A Rights-Based Scientific Approach
Disaster management is no longer a process limited to providing relief after a catastrophe, as it was in the past. In the modern world, it has become a broader and more complex scope of study based on scientific and social theories. The following are the latest concepts in this field, which have evolved from civil
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A Decade for an Apology: How Justice Delay Became Punishment in Sri Lanka
The case against a politician and his associates—an assault on peaceful protesters that lasted over a decade in the Hambantota Magistrate’s Court—finally concluded yesterday (24 September 2025), not with a criminal conviction, but with a settlement between the two parties. This drawn-out ordeal offers a stark illustration of how Sri Lanka’s judicial system punishes
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A Case Study on the Misuse of the Prevention of Terrorism Act: The Arrest and Acquittal of Mohamed Suhail
The case of Mohamed Suhail, a 21 year old aviation student, highlights the arbitrary and unjust application of Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). Arrested in October 2024, Suhail was detained for nine months, with his case showcasing the deeply flawed nature of the PTA and its disproportionate use against individuals, particularly minorities, who
The Invisible Struggle: Overcrowding and Abuses in Sri Lanka’s Prisons
The situation faced by prison inmates has long been a subject of discussion in society, and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka conducted an in-depth study on this issue over approximately two years, releasing a major report in 2022. This report has been submitted to the government, with suggestions that its recommendations be implemented.
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Justice After 17 Years: Mitiyagoda Police Torture Case Ends With Convictions
On March 7, 2008, a 14 year old school student, Buddhi Ewantha Gunasekara of Eranawila, Mitiyagoda, was arrested by officers of the Mitiyagoda Police Crime Branch, Sub-Inspector Saman Palitha Athukorala and Civil Guard Lalith de Zoysa, over an alleged theft of money from a neighboring house. Following his arrest, Buddhi was subjected to brutal torture
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Cabinet Appoints New Director General for NGO Secretariat
The Cabinet has approved the appointment of Lasandamala Muhandiramge, a Grade I officer of the Sri Lanka Administrative Service, as the Director General Registrar of the National Secretariat for Non-Governmental Organizations. The post had remained vacant for nearly six months. Muhandiramge previously served as the Director of the National Secretariat for NGOs. She is an
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Govt to Restructure NGO Secretariat Under New Ministry – Bimal Ratnayake
MP Bimal Ratnayake announced in Parliament that the National Secretariat for Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) will be brought under a new ministry within the next month. He disclosed this information after referring to the report issued by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. According to Ratnayake, the Secretariat will be removed from its current
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Training Today’s Defenders for Tomorrow’s Challenges
The Human Rights and Social Entrepreneurship Development Center (HRSEDC) represents a bold evolution of the Human Rights First Aid Center concept. This initiative goes beyond structural changes, combining social entrepreneurship principles with traditional rights defense to create a forward looking, sustainable model for human rights advocacy. A key dimension of this transformation is the
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NGO Registrations Stalled Since March!
Despite many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) meeting all the required qualifications, not a single NGO has been registered in Sri Lanka since March 18, according to representatives of several organizations awaiting approval. The deadlock follows the resignation of the former Director General of the National Secretariat for NGOs on March 18, after which no successor or
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Human Rights First Aid Centers to be Transformed into Human Rights and Social Entrepreneurship Development Centers
The Right to Life Human Rights Center has plans to transform its long standing Human Rights First Aid Center (HRFAC) service into Human Rights and Social Entrepreneurship Development Centers beginning in January 2026. Established in 2009, the HRFAC network currently operates in 24 locations across 19 districts, providing legal advice, guidance, and awareness programs on
There was a time when even the act of searching for information about the missing led to further disappearances – Philip Dissanayake
Chandradasa Ranasinghe, a young law student and activist from Weerapane, Opatha, Matara, remains one of the many who disappeared during the turbulent period of 1989 in Sri Lanka. At the time of his disappearance, he was just 23 years old and in his first year of studies at the Open University. Ranasinghe was not only