UPR- SRI LANKA SESSION IN 3 DAYS; USA LEADS

IN ADVANCE QUESTIONS TO SRI LANKA

13/11/2017

Sri Lanka will come under Universal Periodic Review of the UN Human Rights
Council on 15th of November at Palais des nations, in Geneva.

The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a unique process which involves a review
of the human rights records of all UN Member States. The UPR is a State-driven
process, under the auspices of the Human Rights Council, which provides the
opportunity for each State to declare what actions they have taken to improve
the human rights situations in their countries and to fulfil their human rights
obligations. As one of the main features of the Council, the UPR is designed to
ensure equal treatment for every country when their human rights situations are
assessed. (- OHCHR)

Member states of the UN will pose questions and concerns on the human rights
situation of Sri Lanka on 15th November (2.30 pm 6.00 pm) for the
consideration of the government of Sri Lanka . Sri Lanka government responses
will be presented on 17th November (5.00 pm to 6.00 pm) and after the
responses the reported will be adopted.

Some of the member countries have already posed questions and concerns to the
Sri Lanka government to answer. USA has posted 8 questions and concerns. Many
countries has raised questions on the Transitional Justice process, returning land
occupied by the military and the PTA.

The questions advanced some of the countries are given below:

BRAZIL

How does your country envisage to promote synergies in implementing the UPR
recommendations and the Sustainable Development Goals, under the 2030
Agenda?

What measures has the country undertaken to protect and promote the rights
of the LGBTI community and decriminalize consensual same sex relations
between adults?

SLOVENIA

Slovenia notes that the multisectoral and comprehensive national action plan to
end sexual and gender-based violence is being prepared. Could you please
elaborate in more detail on the course of the national consultations process and
measures being considered to improve the investigation and prosecution aspects
of sexual and gender based violence, including domestic violence?
SWEDEN

What measures are being taken by the Government of Sri Lanka to

operationalize and ensure the independence of the Office of Missing Persons,
providing it with sufficient funding and resources to fulfil its mandate to
investigate all allegations of disappearance?

Since it is the Governments responsibility to ensure the safety of all people

within its borders, how does the Government of Sri Lanka see that the ongoing
constitutional reform process also can include expanding the non-discrimination
clause under Article 12(2) of the Constitution, to explicitly prohibit discrimination
on the grounds of race, religion, language, caste, sex, political opinion?

What measures are being taken by the Government to denounce incitement to

hatred and violence and publicly clarifying that it is a criminal act?

What measures have been taken by the Government of Sri Lanka to criminalize
all forms of violence against women and why is marital rape not recognized as a
criminal act?
URUGUAY

Uruguay will appreciate receiving information on the work done in order to

eliminate the causes of minors recruitment by armed groupsand guarantee full
rehabilitation, social reintegration and school reintegration of those children who
participated or were affected by the conflict, including those who had to be
accommodated in internal displaced camps and to take into account the linguistic,
cultural, and religious diversity in Sri Lanka (recommendation 127.73 supported
by the country under review).

BELGIUM

Belgium welcomes Sri Lankas ratification on the 25th of May 2016 of the
International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced
Disappearance. Belgium wishes to know which concrete measures have been
taken by the Government of Sri Lanka to guarantee that victims, including
relatives of the enforced disappeared, are provided with full and effective
reparation and that those responsible for enforced disappearances are brought
to justice?

Belgium welcomes Sri Lankas efforts regarding transitional justice. What

progress has been made regarding the establishment of a truth and reconciliation
Commission?

As a strong proponent of the abolition of the death penalty, Belgium welcomes

the fact that Sri Lanka has a moratorium on the execution of the death
penalty since many decades. Would the Government of Sri Lanka consider to take
its engagement one step further and ratify the Second Optional Protocol to the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the
death penalty?

Does the Prevention of domestic violence Act provide the possibility to

prosecute a person specifically for marital rape? If not, does Sri Lanka consider to
criminalize marital rape in the near future?

Which measures does the Government of Sri Lanka take to prevent and
counter religious hate speech in the country?

ESTONIA

What is being done and what progress has been achieved with regard to
investigations of alleged war crimes? Have any international organisations or
experts been included in these investigations?

In the national report you mention that a certain mechanism has been created
to ensure that the commitments under UN HRC Resolution 30/1 are met. Could
you elaborate on the work so far done by that mechanism?

What is the current state of play with regard to the review and repeal of
the Prevention of Terrorism Act in ensuring that it meets international human
rights standards?
GERMANY

In September 2017, the parliament of Sri Lanka has taken the bill on enforced
disappearances from its agenda. Why was this the case and when does the
parliament plan to reconsider the bill?

Has there been any progress or are there any plans to establish a publicly
accessible central register for all persons missing or in custody as previously
recommended?

Poverty levels are still high, especially in the North, East and Uva Provinces.
What concrete measures has the government taken to improve the living
conditions of the poor and to bring them into work?

What steps has the government taken to make the CRPD ratified in 2016
operational, in particular its Article 33? Does it intend to ratify its Optional
Protocol?

Does the Government of Sri Lanka plan to include the rights of LGBTIQ
persons and address sexual and gender-based violence in the final version of the
National Human Rights Action Plan (2017-2022)? If not, for what reason?

NORWAY

Norway is concerned about the use of torture by security and law enforcement
agencies, as well as by impunity and the lack of an appropriate legal framework to
address this, as raised by the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and
protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism
(July 2017). In HRC resolution 30/1, Sri Lanka committed to repeal the Prevention
of Terrorism Act (PTA) and to replace it with anti-terrorism legislation in
accordance with international best practices. Progress on this is noted in the
National Report (point 56). When will the Prevention of Torture Act be repealed
and replaced by legislation that is fully compliant with human rights standards?

Norway is concerned about the existence of legislation that contradicts

principles of equality and non-discrimination. The National Report shows that Sri
Lanka is considering reform of articles in the Constitution (16(1) and 80(3)) that
allow for this. The National Report also says (point 33) that The final report of
the parliamentary Sub-Committee on Fundamental Rights, recommended that
the Fundamental Rights Chapter in the Sri Lankan Constitution include express
guarantees of non-discrimination on the grounds of disability, gender identity
and sexual orientation. Which steps will Sri Lanka take to follow up the report of
the parliamentary Sub-Committee on Fundamental Rights with respect to non-
discrimination?

UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND

When does the Government of Sri Lanka expect to have transitional justice
mechanisms in place, to ensure accountability and give greater certainty of non-
recurrence, as set out in the UNHRC Resolution 34/1?

What steps is the government taking to ensure that detainees held under
the Prevention of Terrorism Act are either charged, tried or released without
further delay and what is the related timescale?

What further steps will the Government of Sri Lanka take to eliminate child
labour as defined by Article 3 of ILO Convention No.182?

What steps is the Government taking to ensure equality of access to the

democratic process and justice systems for all communities across Sri Lanka?

What plans does the Government of Sri Lanka have to amend Article 16(1) of
the constitution and to repeal the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act to ensure
that all laws are not discriminatory?
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

We are disappointed in the lack of movement toward holding security forces

and government officials accountable for human rights violations and abuses.
When does the government plan to establish a credible judicial mechanism to
investigate allegations of violations and abuses of human rights, and violations of
international humanitarian law?

We are concerned by reports of continued abuses by some members of the

security forces, including alleged incidents of torture, sexual violence and
arbitrary arrest. What steps is the government taking to end these abuses and,
when will the government repeal the Prevention of Terrorism Act and replace it
with anti-terrorism legislation that complies with international law and is less
susceptible to serving as a pretext for human rights violations and abuses?

We are concerned by the continued use of Penal Code Sections 365, 365A, 399,
and the Vagrants Ordinance, which in practice outlaw same-sex relations and are
used by law enforcement to harass members of the LGBTI community. What
steps is the government taking to address these concerns raised by Canada and
Argentina in the previous UPR cycle, and to protect members of the LGBTI
community from undue harassment?

We are concerned by civil society reports that local government officials

continue to impose discriminatory restrictions on members of religious
minorities, including requiring registration of places of worship although no law or
regulation specifically requires it. What steps is the government taking to protect
members of religious minority groups from discrimination?

We note that civil society groups have advocated for reform of the Muslim
Marriage and Divorce Act, which permits girls as young as 12 to be married
without their consent. What efforts is the government making to amend the law
in a manner that protects the human rights if women and girls?
We commend Sri Lanka for its work on constitutional reform, but the process
has moved slower than anticipated. How does the government intend to proceed
with constitutional reform?
How is the government using the recommendations in the Consultation Task
Force report to guide it through an inclusive reform process?

We are pleased with continued progress returning military-occupied lands to

their owners, but much land remains to be returned. What action is the
government taking to ensure land returns continue, to provide internally
displaced persons with durable solutions, and to fairly compensate individuals
whose land will not be returned?

LIECHTENSTEIN

What steps has Sri Lanka taken to ratify the Rome Statute in its 2010 version?
What steps has Sri Lanka taken to join the Code of Conduct regarding Security
Council action against genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes, as
elaborated by the Accountability, Coherence and Transparency Group (ACT)?

PORTUGAL

Has the State-under-review established a dedicated national mechanism for

implementation, reporting and follow-up (NMIRF) covering UPR
recommendations, but also recommendations/observations generated by the UN
human rights Treaty Bodies, the Special Procedures and relevant regional
mechanisms? If so, could the State-under-review briefly share its experience on
creating such mechanism, including challenges faced and lessons learnt, as well as
any plans or needs to strengthen the NMIRF in the future?

SWITZERLAND

What are the reasons for the delay in implementing the resolutions 30/1 and
34/1? What are the milestones and benchmarks foreseen in the further
implementation?

When will the Office on Missing Persons (OMP) become fully operational?
What kind of international involvement do you plan in the establishment and
running of the OMP?

On 1 October 2015 the Sri Lankan Government expressed the commitment in

front of the Human Rights Council to repeal the Prevention of Terrorism Act, and
to replace it with anti-terrorism legislation in accordance with contemporary
international best practices. Where do you stand in terms of replacing the
Prevention of Terrorism Act?
 Which steps are taken to implement the recommendations as per the
Concluding Observations on the Eighth Periodic Review of Sri Lanka by the
CEDAW Committee, in particular ensuring judicial review for the Muslim Marriage
and Divorce Act, Kandyan Law and Tesawalamai Law?

Is the Government of Sri Lanka of the opinion that the amount of private land to
be returned to the rightful owners as per the report Advancing Human Rights,
Reconciliation & Good Governance In Sri Lanka will be enough to ensure the
return of displaced people and to contribute to lasting reconciliation (total
5327.44 acres / 22km2 to be retained by state institutions)? Which steps are
taken to increase the amount of private land to be returned to their rightful
owners?

OHCHR
Posted by Thavam