YouSaid · the spoken record

Samarasinghe

lines on the record
11
first
2019-04-23
most recent
2019-11-19
sittings or episodes
2
sources
un-security-council

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  1. “Above all, national ownership and leadership are needed ifthe parties to a conflict and society as a whole are to work towards reconciliation and sustained peace. Finally, it is important to acknowledge the United Nations field missions, which work closely with national stakeholders and local communities, in accordance with mission mandates. Their importance to the overall United Nations peace and security architecture cannot be overstated, especially at a time when the United Nations and multilateralism in general are facing multiple threats and challenges that are testing our collective ability to respond. It is therefore important that field missions enhance cooperation with host Governments in order to cement national ownership.”

    2019-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8668Resumption1 (2019) · source

  2. “Having experienced for nearly 30 years a brutal onslaught of terrorism, Sri Lanka is conscious of the value of a nation built on the principles of democracy and the rule of law. To that end, Sri Lanka has already taken several steps to rebuild its democratic institutions and create a framework for reconciliation, under which the Office on Missing Persons and the Office for Reparations have already been operationalized and the Right to Information Act passed into law, as part of those efforts to strengthen institutions and frameworks. Furthermore, given Sri Lanka's multi-religious culture, the country has sought to encourage interfaith dialogue and harness religious leaders to act as early warning systems so that the Government may be alerted to radical behavioural patterns in a timely manner.”

    2019-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8668Resumption1 (2019) · source

  3. “In doing so, it must be recognized that reconciliation mechanisms and transitional justice initiatives cannot be imposed on nations by external forces. National reconciliation efforts must also be based on meaningful public participation, including that of Government, national legal professionals, women, minorities, affected groups and civil society. Without public awareness, consultations and education campaigns, national reform efforts will remain vulnerable and weak. In that regard, the United Nations could play an important role in facilitating these processes and assisting with capacity-building and non-conditional funding through its peacebuilding architecture in order to build community resilience at the grass-roots level.”

    2019-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8668Resumption1 (2019) · source

  4. “For Sri Lanka, with its multi-ethnic, multicultural and multi-religious composition, and following a decade of peace during which we have forged ahead towards reconciliation, transitional justice and economic development, the Easter Sunday attacks were particularly devastating. In today's intensely globalized world, extremism is digitized and those who have lost territory elsewhere are seeking new pressure points to ignite. Conflict and violence in one nation may tear apart societies in other nations and create schisms in the rich mosaic of our collective civilizations. It is therefore vital that the international community join forces in renewing our efforts in that regard and help to establish restorative frameworks at the community and national levels, leading to genuine reconciliation and sustained peace.”

    2019-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8668Resumption1 (2019) · source

  5. “It is important to recognize that social, economic and political conditions at the community and national levels could have profound and widely divergent effects on the world stage, impacting international peace and security. The recent attacks in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday demonstrate how effectively the global can be localized and the local, globalized. The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant-inspired domestic terrorists responsible for those attacks - some of them foreign-educated and hailing from affluent, politically influential families - were radicalized abroad and through social media.”

    2019-11-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8668Resumption1 (2019) · source

  6. “Psychosocial counselling as a healing process is available and given to women victims of violence by the Office of National Unity and Reconciliation. One recent phenomenon that has emerged regarding sexual and gender-based violence is the request made by civil society organizations to take measures to address the biases that operate against victim survivors as a result of the stigma associated with the incident. They have also requested that the Government develop guidelines to encourage stakeholders to take the initiative to act with responsibility in order to enable victim survivors and their families to participate in society as equals.”

    2019-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8514 (2019) · source

  7. “In line with the underlying principle of zero tolerance for sexual and gender-based violence in Sri Lanka, the policy framework and national plan of action to address sexual and gender-based violence, launched in November 2016, provide a holistic policy guideline to address the issue of violence against women. Awareness-raising programmes have also been conducted by the Government, as well as civil society organizations, on zero tolerance for gender- based violence, legal protections and institutional mechanisms for women at the grass-roots level. The Ministry of Women and Child Affairs has its own units in former conflict areas. Women development officers and counsellors have taken a keen interest in providing victim-centred rehabilitation for victims of violence.”

    2019-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8514 (2019) · source

  8. “Those recommendations include the formulation and enforcement of laws to combat violence against women and girls and the introduction of social protection measures. With regard to allegations of sexual violence during the period of the conflict, the Government has established mechanisms to ensure the right to justice. In 2016, Sri Lanka endorsed the Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence in Conflict. Noting the concerns raised regarding alleged sexual violence, a series of directives have been issued by the President of Sri Lanka with regard to alleged human rights violations. Action has also been taken to prosecute the perpetrators of reported incidences of rape by individual members of the security forces. There are several action plans that focus on sexual and gender-based violence in the country.”

    2019-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8514 (2019) · source

  9. “Heightened vulnerabilities, especially during conflict, render women and girls far more susceptible to violence, and my delegation strongly condemns violence, intimidation, harassment and abuse directed towards women in all its forms and manifestations, whenever they occur. As Sri Lanka engages in rebuilding our society and healing our communities through reconciliation and justice mechanisms, we are committed to addressing the immediate concerns of women and girls by empowering them, providing them a safe space in which to speak out and making them equal participants in all areas of peacebuilding and peacekeeping. Sri Lanka's Administration has approved a set of recommendations presented by the Prime Minister on preventing sexual and gender-based violence.”

    2019-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8514 (2019) · source

  10. “As a troop-contributing country, Sri Lanka has taken many steps with regard to sexual exploitation and abuse in United Nations operations, including by joining the Secretary-General's Circle of Leadership, signing the Secretary-General's voluntary compact on preventing and addressing sexual exploitation and abuse and contributing to the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund for Victims of Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children. The long, drawn-out conflict that Sri Lanka experienced has left deep-seated scars on our society. Women were major Victims. Orphans, war widows, single mothers and women-headed households were the legacy of that conflict.”

    2019-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8514 (2019) · source

  11. “On behalf of my delegation, let me first express our heartfelt gratitude to all those delegations that have extended their condolences and support to the Government and people of Sri Lanka at this difficult time, as we face an unprecedented challenge. We congratulate Germany, as President of the Council for the month of April, on having organized this debate, especially as we approach the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of resolution 1325 (2000). We also thank the Secretary-General for his report (S/2019/280) and the briefers for their valuable comments.”

    2019-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8514 (2019) · source