News

A peace walk with the theme of religious coexistence through the strengthening of pluralism and the rule of law was organized by Addalaichchenai Local Inter Religious Committee (LIRC) to commemorate the International Day of Peace under NPC’s Collective Engagement for Religious Freedom (CERF) project.

A training workshop on Transitional Justice (TJ) was held in Vavuniya for 37 youths in the Vavuniya and Mannar districts under NPC’s project Youth Engagement with Transitional Justice for long-lasting Peace in Sri Lanka.

A collective leadership training for 40 members of eight DIRC steering committees was held in Kalutara under NPC’s IMPACT project.

DIRC members and other participants including religious leaders from Puttalam and Mannar travelled to Nuwara Eliya for an inter district exchange visit under NPC’s Religions to Reconcile project.

A workshop on Writing Truths: The Power of Testimony was presented Dr Minoli Salgado for NPC staff and other civil society participants to explore key concepts in testimony studies and examine their relationship to the Sri Lankan context with a view to developing a survivor-centred approach in the production and reception of testimonies in the country.

Members of Local Inter Religious Committees (LIRCs) in Weligama including religious leaders, Grama Niladharis, police officers, government officials and civil society leaders, were trained on Non Violent Communication (NVC) under NPC’s project, Collective Engagement for Religious Freedom (CERF).

DIRCs in Batticaloa and Trincomalee organized outdoor activities for 33 participants as a bonding and team building exercise under NPC’s project Inter-faith and Inter-ethnic Dialogue in Sri Lanka. DIRC members felt that these activities were necessary to build trust and acceptance of each other, which would lead to better ways of dealing with conflict and finding inner peace.

A series of dialogues with religious leaders in Beruwela, aimed at bringing together Buddhist and Muslim religious leaders to identify and discuss the root causes of religious tension and to make suggestions for possible solutions, is being held under NPC’s project, Collective Engagement for Religious Freedom (CERF).

NPC has launched a project to set up and maintain Human Rights First Aid Centers (HRFACs) where victims of human rights abuses can seek support and redress. The project, Accountability Through Community Engagement and Initiatives for Transition (ACE-IT), is supported by the European Union under its European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights Country Based Support Scheme (CBSS).

Members of the National Inter Religious Committee representing the District Inter Religious Committees (DIRCs) established in 16 districts under the guidance of NPC handed over a resolution to former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, Chairperson of Office for National Unity and Reconciliation (ONUR), and Mano Ganesan, Minister of National Integration, Reconciliation and Official Languages, at a National Inter Religious Symposium in Colombo.

Four hundred participants including religious leaders of all faiths, government officials, university academics, students and representatives from youth organizations and civil society organizations attended NPC’s Inter Religious Symposium held in Colombo.

Two workshops on Transitional Justice (TJ) for youth were held in Kurunegala and Jaffna under NPC’s project Youth Engagement with Transitional Justice for Long Lasting Peace, with the participation of the Secretariat for Coordinating Reconciliation Mechanisms (SCRM).

Several activities for youth were held under NPC’s project, Youth Engagement with Transitional Justice for Long Lasting Peace in Sri Lanka, including a training workshop on Transitional Justice (TJ) for 46 participants in Ratnapura, a stage drama on TJ for 650 new students at the Eastern University students and information sessions in Trincomalee and Batticaloa.

Matara DIRC organized an Ifthar activity during Ramadan in Weligama, in collaboration with the Weligama Municipal Council, to raise awareness in the community about respecting other cultures and religions and to strengthen unity between the Muslim and Sinhala communities.

Executive Director of the National Peace Council, Dr Jehan Perera, was invited to Europe to meet with EU and German parliamentarians, European Commission officials and NGOs.

Despite a plethora of development projects initiated in different parts of the country, there are many small communities that fall between the cracks. One such community is in Deniyaya. It is a Tamil community whose members work on tea plantations.