Parliamentarians and protection and promotion of human rights

During the keynote address at the Commonwealth Secretariat Working Session on 27 June held in Parliament, the Deputy Speaker of Parliament emphasised the fact that the Parliament is an indispensable component of the national governance systems, a crucial institution in the protection and promotion of human rights. He reiterated the fact that the Parliamentarians, being the people’s representatives, are uniquely positioned in steering the state’s actions in safeguarding and upholding the rights of the people.

The new Government came into power in 2015, President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe proceeded to set the country on a transformative path in terms of good governance, rule of law, justice, reconciliation and economic development, with the formation of a National Unity Government, to safeguard every citizen’s rights; irrespective of ethnicity, race, religion, gender, language, class or social status, stated the Deputy Speaker.

Presentations were made by visiting delegates from South Africa: Justice Dikgang Moseneke – Former Deputy Chief Justice and Judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa, and Advocate Karen Mckenzie, Head of Human Rights of the Commonwealth Secretariat.