Features
Gender-based violence
This article is based on “Law is Light” – a series of trilingual legal discussions to educate the general public with Attorneys-at-law of Sri Lanka. This is organised by the Pro Bono committee of the Law Students’ Association of Sri Lanka.
The panellists for the discussion on Gender Based Violence were: Aritha Wickramasinghe – AAL and Equality Director at iProbono. He leads the organisation’s LGBT access to justice work and has been a pioneering activist in the field of diversity and inclusion. Aritha has spearheaded a number of initiatives and pro bono projects promoting diversity, equality, and human rights – specifically LGBT rights – globally. Wasana Kannangara- AAL and a Legal Officer of Child Protection Force and Swasthika Arulingam – AAL, a former project manager at the legal aid commission for the North and East Program Support Unit
What is gender-based violence (GBV) and what are the types of GBV? Who can cause GBV and where can it happen?
Aritha – The term GBV is gender neutral; it means actions of physical and emotional violence against someone. There is an overwhelming violence against women. A recent government survey reveals that 1/5 women are victims of physical and sexual violence. A UNFPA report stated that 95% of women who use public transport are victims of sexual harassment.
For a long time, men have denied their role as a perpetrator of this violence and they are increasingly being called out now. Looking at the statistics if 95% of women experience sexual harassment in public transport, then there has to be a majority of men who are responsible for this type of violence happening. We have to take responsibility as a gender and there needs to be more accountability. There isn’t enough accountability. If you take rape as an example, only one person was convicted of rape in Sri Lanka last year and this is in the light of about 6,000 reported cases.
Swasthika – GBV can happen at the workplace and any public place. Violence can take place on a physical, sexual and mental level. The general advice given to girls is “Don’t go out in the night, it is not safe”, but we fail to recognize that women face violence at home by their family members and intimate partners. This is not discussed in the open. Further, women don’t report violence that happen at work due to the fear of losing the job. In my view, GBV is most probable to happen in private spaces.
Aritha – Violence can be physical, emotional and financial. This revolves around the level of control a person can have over another
Physical violence
If a touch can cause you to feel threatened for life, it can amount to physical violence.
Wasana says, it is all about exerting power over an individual and this can happen within a married couple and even out of marriage where a man forces a woman to have sexual intercourse. Women have the right to have protected sex. If a person denies this right, it can amount to sexual violence.
Emotional violence
This is a series of events causing psychological harm or suffering to the victim. It is a behavioural and verbal form of abuse and it usually takes place in prolonged periods. The victim may feel a high sense of insecurity and depression. The victim may also be emotionally drained, abused and harassed. Screaming at your partner, using bad language as a form of insult, threatening to harm your partner are forms of emotional abuse.
Financial abuse
To have control over financial resources by blocking accounts and denying access to the money.
Who can cause this violence?
Aritha – Some women who took part in the survey thought that they deserved that treatment and they did not think it was a form of abuse. They did not think that there was something wrong. The Patriarchal system is very strong and the women are a part of it. It will take a while to dismantle this notion but it is a struggle which women must lead together with men.
Swasthika – When an individual experiences violence as a child, they tend to do the same as adults. This is called “Generational violence”. However, this is not the only because of violence. When children are influenced by social opinions, they tend to objectify women and the LGBQT and turn into adults who cause violence.
What do you think of bullying? Is bullying part of GBV?
Aritha – Bullying and harassment is part of GBV. When someone is being bullied, they feel threatened for their emotional and physical wellbeing. When the bully is of an opposite gender it does come under GBV.
How do men face sexual violence?
Aritha – We see sexual violence committed by women on men, more often where there is a power play where the female is in a position of power or has responsibility of the male child. Most of the sexual violence experience by men have been committed by other men. Many male victims don’t come out and talk about it due to the stigma attached to it. We are made to think that it is feminine to admit that a horrendous crime has been committed against us. There is a lot of shame and we are told to man up. These toxic values of masculinity mean that when we become victims, we don’t tend to speak up and then unfortunately we become the perpetrators of sexual violence.
Swasthika – We see men bullying men by insulting their masculinity. This is a form of violence which boys face. We don’t see any man complaining about the violence committed by women, due to the cultural stigma it is embedded around. There is an assumption that rape can be only be committed by a man and this is reflected in our laws even today. Hence, men don’t come forward.
How do you suggest we combat this issue and encourage men to speak up?
Aritha – Education in school. We all know, most of us did not receive any form of sexual education in school, relationship education. We are not taught what consent means. A lot of men and women do not understand the word consent. Children are learning about relationships through pornography and a lot of pornographic content is violent, but they are playing out certain fantasies. For a young child who hasn’t been taught consent or decent relationships, seeing this as a normalisation of sexual and gender-based behaviour influences how they treat their partner.
The lack of education perpetuates violence against women.
Is there a difference between domestic violence and gender-based violence? Or is it the same?
Aritha – They are not the same. The contexts are different.
GBV can happen anywhere. It can happen in the bus, beach. Domestic violence happens in a private space within a private relationship. It is not necessarily at home but it happens between intimate partners.
There is a stigma attached to reporting your spouse for any violence inflicted. What advice would you give these people?
As a lawyer, I would say that you should report it but we need to understand that the circumstances of every person are very different. We also need some very sympathetic police because there are instances where women who went to complain have been sent back. The police have pushed partners in abusive relationships to mediation to solve their issues, as opposed to taking any form of legal action. Any form of domestic violence is a criminal matter. The fact that it happened between intimate partners doesn’t reduce its criminality.
Can you speak on the violence faced by the LGBTIQ community in Sri Lanka?
Aritha – There was a survey conducted by Equal Ground in all 25 districts of the country about three years ago and it showed that 70% of the LGBT community had experienced some form of violence and 50% were denied jobs. Lawyers working with iProBono exposed that LGBT people were subjected to forced anal and vaginal examinations by judicial medical officers.
What is the legal framework in place for this issue?
Wasana – First you need to file a complaint at the nearest police station. If you are not close to one you can call the hotline 119. Or you can call the Police headquarters 0112 421111 to get the nearest police station to make a complaint. There is a special number for domestic violence which is 1938.
We live in a digital world today. Can you elaborate on sexual violence that happens on the Internet?
Aritha – We are together with the Ministry of Youth Affairs and the Ministry of Justice on combating cyber bullying and we are making reforms to the Criminal Laws to criminalise cyberbullying, revenge porn and cyber harassment. This has become a problem due to the proliferation of smartphones. We see the school playground bullying taking place on social media like naming and shaming individuals, calling them by insulting words or sending violent or shaming messages. We see a lot of sexual cyber harassment going on. There are actually organised gangs of school boys, unfortunately who run very sophisticated rings, sharing naked images of other school girls. Back then we shared stickers of superheroes. Now they trade pictures of school girls by inducing them into a relationship and threatening them to send nude pictures. This becomes a cycle of sexual violence and lead to revenge porn where they publish those unauthorised photos unless the girl does a sexual favour. Unfortunately, we have given children smart phones without educating them about the consequences.
= You can watch the entire discussion on our YouTube channel – Law Students’ Association Sri Lanka
Co-authors: Zeenath Zakir, Anjalee Udawatte and Shalome Thason (Pro Bono Committee of the Law Students’ Association of Sri Lanka)
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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