Sri Lanka Urges UN Human Rights Council to Recognize Progress

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka called for recognition of its domestic progress in human rights and urged the Council to reconsider punitive mechanisms that risk deepening divisions.

Speaking during the general debate at the United Nations Human Rights Council session in Geneva, the country’s representative emphasized that many nations have acknowledged the tangible improvements made on the ground. 

Citing UNGA Resolution 60/251, which established the Human Rights Council, the representative reminded the body of its mandate to promote human rights with impartiality and proportionality.

“Sri Lanka appreciates the acknowledgement by many countries of the evident progress on the ground,” the representative stated. “Progress made in country-specific situations must be acknowledged, and a pathway out of the Council’s agenda must be created for nations that have made substantial strides.”

The representative criticized the external evidence-gathering mechanism established within the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), calling it an “unprecedented ad hoc expansion” of the OHCHR’s mandate. Sri Lanka argued that such mechanisms undermine domestic legal processes and violate the principles of sovereignty.

“There is no mechanism that allows for this kind of unilateral external mechanism to be imposed on a sovereign government,” the representative said, reiterating Sri Lanka’s commitment to advancing human rights through domestic channels.

Sri Lanka urged the Council to provide the necessary time and space for the country to continue its progress through national processes, rather than through externally imposed measures.