Sri Lankan legal experts call for urgent reforms to address SGBV and child abuse cases
Accountability & Rule of Law - Gender Equality & GBV - Sri Lanka - Advocacy
On 13th June 2025, a group of Sri Lankan lawyers, legal experts and members of civil society submitted a set of recommendations to the Minister of Justice of Sri Lanka, Hon. Harshana Nanayakkara identifying specific measures to expedite justice for Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) and child abuse cases in Sri Lanka.
Identifying that SGBV, including domestic violence, and child abuse is a pervasive issue in Sri Lanka, the submission recommended measures to fast track the investigation and prosecution of SGBV. Law reforms to criminalize marital rape and amend the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act No. 34 of 2005 to protect victims better were further recommended.
Attorneys of LAW Sri Lanka’s Gender Justice Legal Network (GJLN) were signatories to this submission. The GJLN is a network of specialized Sri Lankan lawyers established in 2020 by LAW, that has assisted over 950 victim-survivors of sexual and gender-based violence and child abuse through legal services and other essential services.
Download the full submission here and the executive summary here.