Centre for Policy Alternatives on 6 December, 2013

CPA remembers Nelson Mandela

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6th December 2013, Colombo, Sri Lanka: Marking the death of Nobel Peace Laureate and former President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela, the Executive Director of the Centre for Policy Alternatives, Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu called him a “remarkable leader, politician and statesman” and an “extraordinary human being”.

In a short voice recording, Dr. Saravanamuttu said Mandela “would continue to inspire generations to come” and provides, through his life, a standard, example and inspiration for countries seeking, like Sri Lanka, to move beyond war.

Listen to the full recording below (2 mins).

Centre for Policy Alternatives on 4 December, 2013

VILAASAMA: Safeguarding Civil Rights of Plantation Sector Workers

Vilasama_November 2013 web file

VILAASAMA which in olden day Sinhala means a ‘Missive’, and is translated into Tamil as VILAASAM, is the Report of the Project on Safeguarding Civil Rights of Plantation Sector Workers and highlights moments from the project and interviews with many of the stakeholders and beneficiaries involved. 

Download the magazine from here (in Sinhala) or here (in Tamil).

Project on Safeguarding Civil Rights of Plantation Sector Workers, 2013 

The estate sector workers of Badulla district are still some of the poorest, most marginalised people in Sri Lanka. Fostered by a system that does not want to let go its hold on cheap labour,  conditions in the estate sector of the Uva Province have remained almost unchanged by recent post war development drives. Exemplifying the administrative neglect of these communities is the fact that many plantation sector workers have never had a permanent contact address to their name.

The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) along with a local partner Uva Shakthi Foundation, has worked on a pilot project in Passara ,Badulla(Uva Province) aimed at bringing a modicum of dignity into the lives of this  marginalized  community whose human rights have been routinely denied. In the last six months this project has arranged to provide permanent addresses, for the first time ever in the plantation sector, for 3000 families of estate workers. The project also organized setting up secure mail collection boxes in 20 localities, selecting road names and providing signage for 40 of the estate by-roads in the area, in an endeavor to safeguard the delivery of correspondence.

Mobile clinics were also hosted to speed up the application process for more than 300 National Identity Cards, which may otherwise reach owners late or never.  The latter is particularly relevant to a large number of students who are due to sit for exams shortly.

The right to safely receive one’s correspondence, taken for granted in the rest of the country but fraught with difficulty in this area, can make the difference between receiving a rare university admission, a job in Colombo, a desperately needed remittance from a relative abroad…or not. In the lives of estate worker communities such rare opportunities may come only once or twice in a lifetime and be the difference between hope and a life of regrets.

Sponsored by the Australian High Commission SL

 

Centre for Policy Alternatives on 19 November, 2013
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Policy Brief: Politics, Policies and Practices with Land Acquisitions and Related Issues in the North and East of Sri Lanka

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The Centre for Policy Brief (CPA) in its most recent policy brief titled ‘Politics, Policies and Practices with Land Acquisitions and Related Issues in the North and East of Sri Lanka’ issued today draws attention to several disturbing trends of land acquisition and related issues in the North and East. The brief makes the case that since the end of the war, instead of using land policies to further reconciliation, the Government of Sri Lanka has abused provisions within the Land Acquisition Act among other pieces of legislation to take over thousands of acres of land in a manner that predominantly affects minority communities and facilitates entrenched militarisation in the North and East.

The brief documents how the Government through land acquisitions has shown clear disregard for the law, often acting outside the parameters of the Land Acquisition Act and avoiding the inherent responsibilities of the Act itself, which requires that land only be taken where it is for a “public purpose”. The brief examines three specific cases, Jaffna, Sampur and Weli Oya, to highlighted problems related to acquisitions and alienation of land and how the present practices raises concerns of ‘land grabs’ in the area.  Another disturbing trend with respect to land highlighted in this brief is the dominant role of the central government and military actors in the administration of land.

The brief comes at a time when there is increased attention on Sri Lanka. The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting was recently held in Colombo where several issues related to human rights and reconciliation were raised including ongoing problems related to land. There is likely to be attention on these issues in the coming months and leading to the United Nations Human Rights Council session in March 2014. This brief focuses on land acquisitions and related issues because they serve as an important reflection of government policy and attitudes towards meaningful reconciliation. As the Government continues to blatantly disregard legal standards and pursue initiatives that can constitute ‘land grabs’, they further alienate minority communities and contribute to perceptions that the Government only caters to the majority community. The questions raised in the policy brief have far-reaching implications for devolution and governance in the area, begging the question of whether trends of further centralisation and militarisation regarding land issues are signs of things to come and accordingly key impediments to reconciliation and unity. It is time to take stock of ground realities and initiate reform. 

Download as a PDF here.

Available in Sinhala and Tamil as well.

Centre for Policy Alternatives on 18 November, 2013

Infographic: A tolerant Sri Lanka?

How tolerant is Sri Lanka? How agreeable are we to multiethnic schools, taking instructions from someone a different ethnic group, living in a truly multi-ethnic neighbourhood, marrying someone from a  different ethnicity?

Download full resolution info graphic from here.

Centre for Policy Alternatives on 14 November, 2013
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GLOBAL CALL FOR THE PROTECTION OF CIVIL SOCIETY IN SRI LANKA

14 November 2013: Over 100 activists from 50 countries meeting in Johannesburg during International Civil Society Week are deeply concerned by Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakshe’s statement at the inauguration of the Commonwealth Peoples Forum in Colombo:

“While diversity of opinion is natural in civil society, it is important that one basic quality should underpin the work and the thinking of all civil society organizations. This quality without doubt should be feeling for one’s motherland and commitment to her well-being.  The stature and territorial integrity of the country is the crucial consideration.”

We are concerned at the implied criticism and threat in the statement. We believe it is a sacred patriotic duty for collectives and every individual to draw attention to wrong doing, call for accountability and for governments to support and join in this endeavour, accept dissent and critique, and protect the rights of individuals and collectives who use the rule of law and call upon conscience to right those wrongs.

In this context, we note with concern the ever-shrinking space and threats under which civil society organizations operate within Sri Lanka. In the recent past, individuals associated with civil society organisations in Sri Lanka have been attacked, disappeared and killed. However, the perpetrators of these crimes continue to evade justice.

We note that several ministers in the Sri Lankan government have publically threatened civil society activists and have sought to justify and incite violence against them on the basis that their criticism of the activities of the government is “unpatriotic.” Many civil rights actors presently live under real threat to their lives, livelihoods and ability to associate lawfully with others or assemble peacefully.

In this context we also decry the systematic attack on civil society activists by government owned print and electronic media, which portray activists as “treacherous” and “unpatriotic.” We note that in the lead up to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) to be held in Sri Lanka this week these media attacks have become more intense to the point where the general public have, quite shockingly, been encouraged to physically hurt individual activists.

We call upon the Sri Lankan government to respect its international obligations and ensure an enabling environment for civil society organisations.

We call upon the Secretary General of the Commonwealth and member states to seek assurances from the Sri Lankan government that it will protect human rights defenders and bring perpetrators of attacks on them to book.

We call upon the heads of governments of Commonwealth countries to urge the Sri Lankan government to protect and promote civil society – now and after the CHOGM spotlight has left the Sri Lankan stage.

ISSUED BY CIVICUS, COMMONWEALTH HUMAN RIGHTS INITIATIVE AND CENTRE FOR POLICY ALTERNATIVES

For more information please contact:
Zubair Sayed, CIVICUS, Head of Communication
Email:              [email protected]
Landline:        +27 11 833 5959 ext 140
Mobile:            +27 72 456 3036