UK-Led Core Group Welcomes Progress, Calls for Faster Reforms

COLOMBO (News 1st); A group of countries led by the United Kingdom has welcomed recent progress in Sri Lanka while urging the Government to accelerate reforms and deliver concrete results in the areas of accountability, reconciliation and human rights.

Delivering a statement on behalf of the Sri Lanka Core Group comprising Canada, Malawi, Montenegro, North Macedonia and the United Kingdom, Eleanor Sanders welcomed what was described as the UN High Commissioner's balanced assessment of the human rights situation in Sri Lanka.

The group acknowledged that Sri Lanka has faced significant challenges in recent years, including severe weather-related disasters and global energy shocks, but stressed that the Government's stated commitment to reform must now be translated into tangible progress.

The statement welcomed several positive developments highlighted in the UN report, including Sri Lanka's ratification of the International Labour Organization's Convention 190 on violence and harassment in the workplace, as well as the country's engagement with the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

However, the Core Group emphasized that much more action is needed to build public confidence in accountability and reconciliation processes.

While acknowledging progress in several high-profile investigations and prosecutions, the group noted that these developments have not yet been accompanied by a comprehensive victim-centred accountability process capable of addressing past violations.

The statement also drew attention to recently reopened mass grave excavations, describing them as a stark reminder that thousands of cases involving enforced disappearances remain unresolved.

Concern was also expressed over continuing reports of intimidation, harassment and restrictions affecting civil society organizations, journalists and victims' groups, particularly in the Northern and Eastern Provinces.

The Core Group urged Sri Lanka to make further progress in strengthening democratic governance through transparent and inclusive consultation processes that address the concerns and needs of all affected communities.

According to the statement, such efforts should include advancing legal and institutional reforms, resolving land-related disputes, ensuring respect for human rights within detention institutions and strengthening the independence and effectiveness of key national institutions.

The remarks were delivered during discussions on Sri Lanka at the ongoing session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva.