SriLanka

UN Special Rapporteur recommends Sri Lanka to establish an Independent Commission on minorities with powers

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The United Nations Special Rapporteur on minority issues, Rita Izsák-Ndiaye, who concluded a 10-day mission to #SriLanka today, recommended the island nation's government to establish an #IndependentCommission on Minorities under the Constitution with a clear mandate, powers, resources and autonomy.

The Special Rapporteur visited Sri Lanka from 10 to 20 October 2016 at the invitation of the Sri Lankan government to assess the current situation of national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities in the country.

Issuing a statement at the end of her visit, the UN official commended the current administration for taking progressive steps in relation to the inclusion of the voices of the general public, including civil society representatives and ordinary citizens into the ongoing reform processes.

She noted that although both the Public Representations Committee on Constitutional Reform (PRC) and the Consultation Task Force on Reconciliation Mechanisms (CTF) have reached out to and listened to thousands of people through oral and written submissions and drawn staff from diverse ethnic and religious groups, including women, the minorities feel excluded from other areas of decision-making and power structures.

"As a consequence of the long conflict, there is a trust deficit vis-à-vis the State as well as between the communities in Sri Lanka," she said.

Ms. Izsák-Ndiaye observed that while according to the Constitution, the national languages of Sri Lanka are Sinhala and Tamil, English being the link language, in reality, several challenges exist with respect to language, particularly in the public domain. Law enforcement officers and members of the military deployed in Tamil-speaking areas often lack Tamil language skills, the Rapporteur noted.

The UN official recognized that In many places, there is a peaceful co-existence of different religious groups where the construction of temples, churches or mosques are carried out without hindrance and religious services are enjoyed without discrimination or harassment.

The Special Rapporteur recommended the government to promptly take necessary steps towards the establishment of an independent, dedicated minority rights mechanism in charge of coordinating minority issues, with the inclusion of representatives of minority communities.

Among the short-term recommendations, to be implemented as soon as possible are measures to ensure full protection of all minority places of worship as well as heritage, repeal and replace the Prevention of Terrorism Act, gradual release of remaining land held by the military to the civilians, review the cases of security-related detainees with a view to their swift release and ensure the smooth and transparent process of establishment of the Office of Missing Persons by January 2017 with adequate budget and inclusive composition.

In long term, she recommended the government to step up measures and allocate sufficient budget to ensure the implementation of language policy and consider establishing affirmative action policies for under-represented communities in the government, the judiciary, armed forces and law enforcement, along ethnic, religious, linguistic as well as gender lines.

The Special Rapporteur will present her full report and recommendations to the United Nations Human Rights Council in March 2017.