Promoting Reconciliation, Accountability and Human Rights in Sri Lanka

A/HRC/RES/60/1View PDF

Who created this mandate?

A document of the Human Rights Council, under agenda item 2Annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General, published in 2025.

What other versions does this mandate have?

8 versions · 2014–2025

2025A/HRC/RES/60/1Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri LankaLatestCompare with previous version
2024A/HRC/RES/57/1Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri LankaCompare with previous version
2022A/HRC/RES/51/1Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri LankaCompare with previous version
2021A/HRC/RES/46/1Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri LankaCompare with previous version
2019A/HRC/RES/40/1Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri LankaCompare with previous version

Versions are identified automatically by matching titles within the same organ (~97% accuracy on a manual audit).

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

1 entity

Extracted automatically from each entity’s budget submission.

What subjects does this mandate have?

4 topics

Accountability Human Rights Reconciliation Sri Lanka

What does this mandate say?

14 operative paragraphs

Welcomes the oral update presented by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to the Human Rights Council at its fifty-eighth session and the report of Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights presented to the Council at its current session;

Also welcomes the visit to Sri Lanka by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in June 2025 at the invitation and with the facilitation of the Government of Sri Lanka, and the engagement of the Government with the Office of the High Commissioner and the special procedures of the Human Rights Council, encourages the continuation of such engagement and dialogue, and calls upon the Government to actively consider the recommendations made by the Office and the special procedures;

Recognizes the measures taken by the Government of Sri Lanka towards accountability for corruption and economic mismanagement, which had a significant detrimental impact on the enjoyment of human rights in Sri Lanka, and encourages further action in this regard, including investigations into and, where warranted, the prosecution of corruption, including where committed by current and former public officials;

Welcomes the recognition by the Government of Sri Lanka of the immense suffering endured by Sri Lanka due to ethnic conflicts and its commitment not to allow a resurgence of divisive racist politics, its recognition of the shared pain and grief of individuals in all communities and its commitment to guarantee democracy, to restore the rule of law and to create a society free from discrimination;

Also welcomes the commitment made by the Government of Sri Lanka to repeal the Prevention of Terrorism Act and the appointment of a committee to examine its repeal, while expressing concern at reports that detentions under that law continue, and have disproportionately affected individuals from Tamil and Muslim communities, and urges the Government to apply a moratorium on the use of the law, to expedite its repeal and to ensure that any legislation on combating terrorism complies fully with the State’s obligations arising from international law, including international human rights law;

Further welcomes the commitment made by the Government of Sri Lanka to amend the Online Safety Act and the appointment of a committee to formulate amendments to the law, while acknowledging concerns about the absence of judicial oversight in the Act and broad definition of offences and enforcement powers, and encourages the Government to expedite its amendment to ensure that the Act complies fully with the State’s international obligations to protect the right to freedom of opinion and expression;

Recognizes that many cases of enforced disappearance remain unresolved in Sri Lanka, and the prolonged suffering this has caused to the families of the disappeared, and the importance of the independent and effective functioning of the Office on Missing Persons;

Acknowledges the identification of multiple mass grave sites in Sri Lanka, emphasizes the need for ongoing work to be provided with adequate resources, and urges the Government of Sri Lanka to seek international support proactively to ensure sufficient financial, human and technical resources to conduct exhumations in accordance with international standards;

Welcomes the commitment of the Government of Sri Lanka to a renewed direction on several long-standing issues, acknowledges the reopening of investigations into some cases of human rights violations and the Easter Sunday bombings, and urges the Government to accelerate investigations and prosecutions in compliance with international human rights standards, to seek international technical assistance to strengthen capacities, and to ensure the full participation of victims, survivors and their representatives, as well as the protection of victims and witnesses;

Acknowledges with appreciation the commitment of the Government of Sri Lanka to establish an independent public prosecutorial body, and urges that the body be fully independent, effective and robust;

Calls upon the Government of Sri Lanka to ensure prompt, thorough and impartial investigations into, and, if warranted, the prosecution of, all alleged crimes relating to human rights violations and serious violations of international humanitarian law, including long-standing emblematic cases, with the full participation of victims and their representatives;

Urges the Government of Sri Lanka to create an enabling environment in which representatives of civil society, human rights defenders, journalists, victims, survivors and their families, especially women, are free from all forms of harassment and reprisals;

Stresses the importance of releasing remaining lands still held and used economically by the military and other State actors, and of resolving land disputes involving archaeological, religious and conservation issues in ways that are transparent, consultative, impartial and non-discriminatory;

Decides to extend the mandate of the Office of the High Commissioner and all work requested of it by the Human Rights Council in its resolution 51/1 of 6 October 2022, and requests the Office to present a written update at its sixty-third session, and a comprehensive report on progress in reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka at its sixty-sixth session, to be discussed during an interactive dialogue.

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