Sajith Premadasa Meets ICRC to Discuss Sri Lanka’s Unresolved Humanitarian Issues

Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa met with Angelique Apero, Head of Delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Sri Lanka, in Colombo to discuss the organisation’s future activities and humanitarian work in the country.

The meeting was held following a request by the ICRC to discuss its planned future interventions in Sri Lanka.

The discussions focused on humanitarian issues that continue to arise from the country’s past armed conflicts and the need to strengthen sustainable national capacities to address them. Particular attention was given to the needs of families seeking information about missing persons, strengthening forensic capabilities, cooperation among state institutions, and promoting greater awareness and implementation of international humanitarian law.

The ICRC has been operating in Sri Lanka since 1989, with its current work focusing on addressing humanitarian needs resulting from past conflicts, supporting families of missing persons, strengthening forensic capacities and promoting knowledge and implementation of international humanitarian law.

Premadasa stressed the importance of adopting an impartial, humanitarian, evidence-based and inclusive approach when addressing unresolved humanitarian issues.

He also highlighted the need to strengthen credible and sustainable Sri Lankan institutions capable of responding to such humanitarian needs in a professional and impartial manner.

“The end of a conflict does not mean the end of its humanitarian consequences,” Premadasa said, stressing that families searching for information about their loved ones deserve dignity, compassion and justice regardless of their ethnicity, religion, geographical background or political affiliation.

The meeting also discussed the potential support that could be obtained through international expertise to strengthen Sri Lanka’s forensic sector, efforts to trace missing persons and institutional capacities. However, both sides emphasised that sustainable, long-term solutions ultimately require strengthening the effectiveness and capacity of Sri Lanka’s national institutions.

Premadasa noted that thousands of families from different communities in Sri Lanka continue to seek information about the fate and whereabouts of their missing loved ones. He also expressed his appreciation for the ICRC’s longstanding humanitarian contribution to Sri Lanka and recognised the importance of continued dialogue between the ICRC, Parliament, national institutions and other relevant stakeholders to address remaining humanitarian challenges and strengthen respect for international humanitarian law.