News

NPC organized a Civil Society Forum in Colombo that was attended representatives of 112 NGOs and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs). The forum was the first meeting of the Civil Society Platform that was founded by NPC in collaboration with other organizations.

A multilevel school-based awareness campaign on reconciliation and social cohesion was conducted in Tellippalai, Jaffna, for 80 parents and teachers in three schools under NPC’s Social Cohesion and Reconciliation (SCORE) Activity, with support of its partner Social Organizations Networking for Development.

The Human Rights First Aid Centre in Galle held a workshop for 40 community leaders under NPC’s project Accountability Through Community Engagement and Initiatives for Transition (ACE-IT) to discuss Transitional Justice and the ongoing reconciliation mechanisms of the government including the Human Rights Commission, Office on Missing Persons (OMP), National Police Commission, and the Right to Information Act (RTI).

Religious leaders and representatives of Community Based Organizations (CBOs) belonging to District Inter Religious Committees (DIRCs) from 16 districts participated in a four-day exchange visit to Batticaloa and Kattankudy.

A workshop for 53 youth leaders involving games and discussions under NPC’s project Crossing Boundaries - Youth Groups in Sri Lanka, funded by Helvetas Sri Lanka, was held in Trincomalee.

An exposure visit for the Vavuniya and Akurana Local Inter Religious Committees (LIRCs) was conducted under NPC’s project Collective Engagement for Religious Freedom (CERF) with the support of Sarvodaya and the Rural Development Foundation Vavuniya.

A series of information sessions for police officers, security forces personnel and government sector officers on ethics, human rights and the Right To Information Act (RTI), Office on Missing Persons (OMP) and other independent commissions were completed under an European Union (EU) funded project being implemented in 11 districts.

Under the Social Cohesion and Reconciliation (SCORE) Activity, a group of 46 community members from Trincomalee visited Jaffna to celebrate International Peace Day and share their experiences.

NPC organized workshops on pluralism, Transitional Justice (TJ), good governance and missing persons for the Local Government officials from the Anuradhapura, Badulla, Moneragala and Matara districts under its project Consolidating Ongoing Multi-level Partnership Actions for Conflict Transformation (COMPACT).

High level government officials, religious leaders, representatives from NGOs and Community Based Organizations, members of the Community Policing Unit, media personnel and DIRC members attended facilitative meetings in six districts under NPC’s most recent project, Actively Countering Extremism, implemented with funding and guidance from the Canadian Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI).

A leadership training workshop for marginalised communities from the Nuwara Eliya District was held under NPC’s project Accountability Through Community Engagement and Initiatives for Transition (ACE-IT) funded by the European Union. The project is being implemented in 11 districts with support from the Right to Life Human Rights Centre.

A facilitation meeting was held in Matara with representatives of community policing units, state officials and community leaders under NPC’s project Actively Countering Extremism funded by Canadian Fund for Local Initiatives.

The first district stakeholder meeting under NPC’s project Crossing Boundaries – Youth Groups in Sri Lanka was held in Matara with the participation of 35 government officials including officers from the Divisional Secretariat, civil activists, entrepreneurs and youth.

Several discussions were held on the 19th amendment to the Constitution and its benefits at the monthly meetings of District Inter Religious Committees (DIRCs) of Kurunegala, Galle, Matara, Hambantota, Monaragala, Batticaloa, Anuradhapura and Ratnapura under NPC’s project Consolidating Ongoing Multi-level Partnership Actions for Conflict Transformation (COMPACT) funded by MISEREOR and CAFOD.

The UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Ahmed Shaheed, met Kandy, Vavuniya, Puttalam and Batticaloa District Inter Religious Committee (DIRC) members during his 12-day visit to Sri Lanka. Buddhist, Christian, Hindu and Muslim religious leaders raised several issues of concern with Mr Shaheed.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe stressed the importance of Transitional Justice (TJ) in Sri Lanka’s reconciliation process and pointed out that each country had its own unique course to follow. He praised NPC’s efforts towards furthering awareness of TJ and added that the government was taking steps to establish an inter faith reconciliation council made up of religious leaders.