The Office for Reparation, an independent authority created by the Office for Reparations Act passed in parliament on 9 October 2018, will commence its functions with the appointment of Commissioners.
It is the responsibility of the Office for Reparation to identify the aggrieved victims qualified for reparation and provide appropriate compensation individually or collectively to them.
Office for Reparations is the second step of the transitional justice mechanisms for reconciliation process formulated locally and implemented by the Government of Sri Lanka.
The commissioners have been appointed to the Office for Reparations for a three-year term. Mrs. Dhara Wijayathilake has been appointed as the chairperson of while A.A.M. Fatheehu, Colonel (retd.) Rathnapriya Bandu, Dr. J.M. Swaminathan, and Mrs. Sumithra Sellathamby are appointed as members of the office.
The government in 2019 budget has allocated Rs. 700 million for the Office for Reparations.
The list of nominees selected by the Constitutional Council from a competitive selection process has been directed to the approval of the President.
The Office for Reparations is an independent body reporting to the parliament of Sri Lanka.
The Office is tasked to identify the aggrieved persons who are eligible for reparations as well as their level of need, and to formulate and recommend to the Cabinet of Ministers, Policies on Reparations and guidelines with regard to the grant of individual and collective reparations, including the criteria for eligibility for aggrieved persons to obtain reparations, including criteria relating to the nature and severity of grievances for which reparations will be available.
Courtesy: Colombo Page
