Ban Ki-Moon Calls On All Parties To Participate Peacefully In The PC Elections

September 19, 2013 

“The Secretary-General welcomes the forthcoming provincial elections scheduled for 21 September in Sri Lanka, particularly in the Northern Province, where these are the first elections since the creation of Provincial Councils in 1987.” says the Spokesperson for UN General Secretary Ban Ki-Moon today.

Issuing a statement the Spokesperson said; “The Secretary-General views these elections as an important opportunity to foster political reconciliation and to build confidence between Sri Lankans after many years of conflict. He calls on all parties to participate peacefully in the elections and to work together in the period following the elections to address the national and post-war agenda constructively and collaboratively.”

Democratizing Disability: A Dawning Discourse

By Avanthi Kalansooriya and Sumudhu Jayasinghe -September 19, 2013

Avanthi Kalansooriya

“What does Disability mean to you? What are our perceptions?”

Do we see disability in a mother whose hearing is rapidly deteriorating, a father who’s become partially paralyzed after a stroke, an aunt who’s become bedridden simply due to old age, or a brother born with a physical, cognitive, or mental impairment? For many of us it is only the latter that we label as being disabled but, whether we notice it or not; whether a consequence from birth, a result of old age, a product of the war, or an act of fate, disability permeates through the walls of our families and friends, more than we are often willing to recognize.

On the 3rd of September, the International Centre for Ethnic Studies (ICES) in collaboration with Wheels in Motion (WIM) facilitated a roundtable discussion on the Draft Disability Law and the National Action Plan on Disability (NAPD) at the ICES Auditorium. The roundtable was attended by a wide cross-section of participants, including representatives from a number of key Ministries, UN bodies, disability advocacy groups, legal establishments, academia, civil society and various organizations in the donor community. Moreover, the discussion was not only enlightening in terms of raising awareness regarding the current state of disability in Sri Lanka, but dynamic and productive in terms of identifying key issues that need to be addressed and rectified by the government and civil society alike.

At present, Sri Lanka has signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) but has yet to ratify it. The Convention provides an excellent framework and aims to promote and protect all human rights, ensure the full and equal enjoyment of rights and fundamental freedoms, and provide respect for the inherent dignity of people living with disabilities. Our current National Policy thus, draws strongly from the UN CRPD.                                                          Read More