58th Session of the Human Rights Council:
Statement by PR/Geneva
(as the country concerned following the Oral Update on Sri Lanka
by the High Commissioner for Human Rights)
03 March 2025
Mr. President,
Excellencies,
Mr. President, I wish to congratulate you on your election as the President of this Council.
Mr. President,
Minister of Women and Child Affairs, Saroja Savithri Paulraj presented the progress made since the submission of Sri Lanka’s 9th periodic report to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in Geneva on 13th February 2025. Outlining notable progress achieved, notable achievements in decision making roles including in Parliament, Minister Paulraj underlined the government’s commitment to upholding the rights of women and girls and in advancing gender equality across all sectors, while seeking to address remaining challenges across economic, social and cultural spheres. Minister Paulraj highlighted the election of 22 female Parliamentarians from diverse social backgrounds including from the working class, marginalized communities and two women parliamentarians from the Malayaga community for the first time in Sri Lanka’s parliamentary history, as well as the appointment of the third female Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, who obtained the highest number of preferential votes from the Colombo district.
Madam Chair,
Distinguished members of the Committee,
Civil society representatives, particularly those who have travelled from Sri Lanka,
Good morning
Mr. President,
As the country concerned in respect of draft resolution 57/ L.1, as authorized by the newly elected Government in Sri Lanka, let me brief the Council on the latest developments in the country.
Following the model conduct for a free, fair and peaceful election followed by a dignified transition in keeping with our decades of democratic practice, H.E. the President Anura Kumara Dissanayake was sworn in as the 9th Executive President of Sri Lanka on 23 September.
Mr. President,
High Commissioner for Human Rights,
Excellencies,
As this Council deliberates on the comprehensive report on Sri Lanka, presented by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, I wish to reiterate Sri Lanka’s longstanding commitment to constructive engagement with this Council , the Universal Declaration and the related Treaties as well as other human rights mechanisms to which we are party.
Statement by Her Excellency Himalee Arunatilaka, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in Geneva at the
55th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council
(as the country concerned following the Oral Update on Sri Lanka
by the High Commissioner for Human Rights)
01 March 2024
Mr. President,
The Hon. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka, in his address to this Council earlier this week, highlighted that Sri Lanka has over the years engaged actively and constructively with this Council. He also elaborated on our recent engagements with a number of working methods of the Council. It is in this context that I take the floor today, specifically to provide more details on the progress made on matters of relevance to this Council.
- Statement by Ambassador and Permanent Representative Himali Arunatilaka during the General Debate on Agenda Item 2 at the HRC 54, 13 September 2023
- Sri Lanka rejects High Commissioner’s Written Update and reaffirms commitment to pursuing human rights through domestic institutions
- Statement delivered by H.E. Himalee Arunatilaka, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka, at the 54th Session of the UN Human Rights Council during the Interaction Dialogue on the Report on Sri Lanka by the High Commissioner for Human Rights,