December 17th, 2021, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The COVID-19 health crisis has posed a range of unprecedented legal, political, economic and social challenges for Sri Lanka since March, 2020. While the government was successful in containing the first wave of COVID-19, the pandemic response has since unravelled, revealing issues with the heavily militarised and politicised approach […]
November 29th, 2021: The right to protest, as manifested in the freedom of assembly, association, and expression, is an important feature of a democratic society that facilitates civic engagement in political processes beyond just voting at elections. This right is vital for the healthy functioning of a democracy, and while it is recognized that the […]
14th October, 2021, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) is deeply concerned about the proposed Bill to amend the Code of Criminal Procedure Act, published in the Gazette on the 8th of October 2021. The proposed amendments seek to dispense with the requirement of producing a suspect or accused before the Magistrate […]
September, 2, 2021, Colombo, Sri Lanka: On the 30th of August 2021, by way of Gazette 2243/1, President Gotabaya Rajapakse issued a proclamation under Section 2 of the Public Security Ordinance (Chapter 40) as amended. In the Proclamation, the President states that ‘I am of the opinion that it is considered expedient to do so […]
19th July, 2021, The Sri Lankan government enacted a Constitutional Amendment within the first two months of its coming into power in August, 2020. The 20th Amendment to the Constitution, so enacted, bears as its central feature the concentration of powers in the Executive President, and thereby erodes several of the democratic reforms introduced by […]
July 13 2021, Colombo, Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka is at present confronted with unprecedented challenges. The COVID-19 crisis in Sri Lanka has been characterized not only by the immediate public health and economic challenges which have been pervasive across the world. It has also brought to the fore a number of underlying issues that have […]
May 3rd 2021, Colombo, Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka is presently debating the legal framework for the Colombo Port City Special Economic Zone (hereinafter sometimes the Colombo Port City). At the outset it must be noted that the Colombo Port City has the potential for the promotion and advancement of the Sri Lankan economy. However, the […]
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 17 December, 2021