TOP > Minority Rights > Peacebuilding and human rights in Sri Lanka

Peacebuilding and human rights in Sri Lanka

In February 2002, after nearly 20 years of civil war, the people of Sri Lanka came close to achieving peace with the signing of a ceasefire agreement between the Singhalese-majority government and Tamil Tiger rebels. Since 2005, however, the country lies on the brink of a civil war again.

The war, which started in 1983, began due to the unwillingness of the Sinhalese, who control the core of the government, to guarantee the Tamil minority's participation in politics, language, and religion. Even after the ceasefire agreement was signed in 2002, peace negotiations did not progress smoothly. Then, late in 2004 and during this time of unrest, Sri Lanka was assaulted by the Indian Ocean tsunami.

Since the ceasefire, IMADR has been calling for support in Japan and overseas to ensure that the minorities are not excluded from peacebuilding and tsunami recovery efforts, and can help themselves rise out of these difficulties. Following the election of a new hard-line president, however, the country has once again slid to the brink of civil war, and all efforts made to this day are in danger of being laid to waste.

IMADR’s Asia Committee (IMADR-AC), based in Colombo, Sri Lanka, has been working with grassroots partners to ensure that minorities are not left out of the peace building process and post-tsunami reconstruction, and to help empower minorities. It is working with various groups to provide support for and advocate the rights of people displaced by both the conflict and tsunami.

IMADR Asia Committee Activities

Resettlement and development for victims of conflict, refugees and internally displaced persons
IMADR-AC works to empower victims of conflict, refugees and internally displaced persons (especially women) by providing aid and resettlement support. It has built infrastructure such as childcare centers and toilets in areas, including Polonnaruwa and Dambulla.

Peace-building and human rights advocacy
IMADR-AC surveys the living conditions of the internally displaced, and the violence endured by those living in border regions. This is done in cooperation with grassroots organizations based in the northern city of Jaffna, and the eastern city of Trincomalee. Throughout this process, dialogue between ethnic groups is developed through networking and organizing women's groups in villages that can serve as bases for peace activities.