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The 2024 US State Department Human Rights Report delivers a scathing indictment of Sri Lanka’s rights record, exposing the sterilization of impoverished Tamil plantation women without proper consent, alarming patterns of police killings, torture, arbitrary detention, and a deep-rooted culture of impunity. It details systemic abuses that persist despite government pledges to uphold justice and human rights.
The United States has raised serious human rights concerns over Sri Lanka in its 2024 global report, revealing troubling patterns of abuse, discrimination, and unaccountable governance. While no forced abortions were reported, civil society groups told the State Department that voluntary sterilizations have disproportionately affected marginalized communities particularly Tamil plantation workers living in extreme poverty. These sterilizations were often performed by government doctors during cesarean deliveries in state hospitals, with consent sought from the husband but, in many cases, not from the woman herself.
The report highlights how this practice reflects systemic neglect and inequality within Sri Lanka’s healthcare and governance structures.
Beyond reproductive rights, the US report documents multiple cases of extrajudicial killings carried out by security forces or their agents. Several deaths occurred in police custody often during alleged escape attempts or while suspects were being escorted to crime scenes. Between January and August 2024, the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) recorded seven custodial deaths, while police reported 103 targeted shootings, a slight drop from the 120 incidents in 2023.
The report also exposes continued harassment of journalists, especially those in the Northern and Eastern provinces reporting on sensitive topics such as the civil war, enforced disappearances, and land disputes. Citizen journalists were not spared from intimidation and threats, allegedly carried out by members of the security forces.
Although no new enforced disappearance cases were recorded in 2024, there has been no progress in the notorious “Navy 11” case, in which former Navy Commander Wasantha Karannagoda is accused of abducting and disappearing 11 young men in 2008–2009. Investigations continue into 15 mass graves most located in the Northern and Eastern provinces.
The State Department report further criticizes arbitrary arrests and prolonged detention without charge. Between January and August, the HRCSL documented 838 complaints of unlawful detention, including cases involving journalists and politicians. Despite an unofficial moratorium on the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) since 2022, arrests under the law continued, with at least 10 recorded in the past year. As of September, civil society groups estimated that 42 people remained imprisoned under the PTA 14 Tamils accused of LTTE-related activities and 28 Muslims linked to the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings.
The report notes that between January 2023 and March 2024, the HRCSL recorded 2,845 cases of torture and 675 complaints of inhuman treatment. These figures underscore what the US calls a pervasive culture of impunity, with military, police, and government officials rarely prosecuted for rights violations. The report concludes that the Sri Lankan government has taken minimal action to identify and punish perpetrators, raising doubts over its commitment to justice and accountability.
