Citizens group protests President’s statement

A group of concerned citizens yesterday responded to President Maithripala Sirisena’s comments to reverse the recent gazette notification of women being able to work in liquor stores and purchase alcohol. 

The following is their full statement.  

We would like express our deep concern over statements made by the President and Government of Sri Lanka over a period of time regarding women’s equality in this country. Statements hailing as far back as 2014, in a ministerial capacity, indicate President Sirisena’s lack of a modern day understanding of women’s right to equality and non-discrimination in private and public life, on par with men. “May all women be reborn as men in their next incarnation,” said Minister Sirisena, for reasons best known to him.

Just last weekend President Sirisena made a statement saying he would overturn an amendment to Excise Notification No. 666 of the Gazette Extraordinary of 1979 permitting women to purchase alcohol.

Looking at the trend of public positions taken by President Sirisena’s Government regarding women of this country, it is abundantly clear that ensuring the rights of women is not a top priority. Perhaps the President see himself above the rights guaranteed in our Constitution, as he, oftentimes unilaterally, makes decisions and proclamations that relegate women to the status of second-class citizens? Given also the trend of President Sirisena’s subservience to the Buddhist clergy and other religious leaders, particularly in matters related to the independence and autonomy of women, it must be asked, who is the leader of this country?

This lack of commitment to equality and non-discrimination of women and an antiquated idea of an ‘ideal Sri Lankan woman’ which is far removed from women’s lived realities have percolated down to government policy in more recent times. For this reason efforts to reform discriminatory laws and policies against women have time and time again come up against stiff resistance from within government.

The unconstitutional Family Background Report, which discriminates against migrant women with children, instated by the Rajapaksa Government, has continued to be upheld by the Sirisena Government, even as it drives more and more women to undocumented and unsafe migration. Ongoing proposed reforms to the Muslim Marriages and Divorce Act, which have been trying to overturn discriminatory provisions such as child marriage and a lack of consent to marriage by women, have been delayed and postponed, both by the current Government and the previous regime and reduced the matter to be resolved by the ‘community’. The Government has yet to issue a statement or take action on the extensive research done by Muslim women’s rights activists documenting the ongoing presence of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in the country.

On the issue of abortion, advocacy by the medical and human rights communities to reform antiquated abortion laws which put women at grave risk have been halted by the President on the opposition of religious institutions. 

While President Sirisena and parliamentarians in Sri Lanka are free to hold antiquated views about women in their private life, as public servants paid for and in service to the citizens of this country, over half of whom are women, such positions are unlawful and unconstitutional. Women voters will take notice at the upcoming local government elections and elections to come.