The Right to Life Human Rights Centre stated that civil society, which continuously advocates for the implementation of Sri Lanka’s human rights legal system and protects the rights of victims, must now also incorporate human rights issues arising from natural disasters caused by climate change into its scope.
Philip Dissanayake – Executive Director
Philip Dissanayake, Executive Director of the Right to Life Human Rights Centre, made these remarks at a program to honour human rights defenders on December 11, 2025, held to commemorate International Human Rights Day on December 10, 2025.
“Sri Lanka is a country with high environmental risk,” Mr. Dissanayake said. “In this situation, civil society organizations must include environmental justice in their scope. We need to advocate for the development of evidence-based laws and systems. Human rights defenders will also have to deal with the impact of climate change, disasters, and providing services to victims.”
Lakshan Dias(AAL) – Chairperson Human Rights Committee of BASL
Lakshan Dias, Chairman of the Human Rights Committee of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka, emphasized the critical relationship between the victim and the lawyer in protecting human rights. He pointed out the importance of examining the problems of people currently referred to only as “natural disaster victims” from a rights-based perspective and formulating policies accordingly.
“They should be considered not as refugees, but as a community whose rights have been violated,” Mr. Dias stated. “The intervention in this regard must deepen to the level where being affected by a disaster is also considered a human rights violation. Legal interventions are crucial to obtaining climate justice for victims and societies affected by global warming.”
He added that civil society must introduce these discourses into the legal system through public interest litigation. “We must start and nurture this conversation today, without waiting for the next disaster,” he urged. “A human rights approach must be built, not just a charitable one. It is the responsibility of organizations like the Right to Life Human Rights Centre to intervene in rebuilding disaster victims from a human rights perspective and to work towards turning subjects into citizens.”
During the event, human rights defender Amitha Priyanthi received the annual Right to Life award for human rights defenders. The award recognized her relentless courage and intervention over twenty-five years on behalf of her brother, a victim of state torture, and thousands of other victims.
Additionally, commemorative plaques were awarded to the Gampaha, Anuradhapura, and Hambantota human rights centres, which won first, second, and third place, respectively, in an assessment of their interventions in grassroots human rights protection. The Kegalle Human Rights First Aid Centre received a special commendation.
Kusum Silva – Gampaha HRFAC Coordinator
Nimal Dissanayake – Anuradhapura HRFAC Coordinator
V.S Patabendhi – Hambantota HRFAC Coordinator
The event also saw the presentation of certificates to volunteer human rights defenders from the island-wide Human Rights First Aid Centre network. Sunil S. Pellandeniya and Alfred Jerushan Dalima secured first place in the final evaluation of the training program. Certificates were also awarded to D.L. Duleeka Roshini, R.G.S.M. Wijenayake, T.D. Wasantha Neelamani, P.D.T.L. Wijesinghe, Jayantha Hewage, and G.R.S. Kulathunga Bandara.
