Message from the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka Sexual and gender based violence and ability to exercise reproductive rights continue to be issues that need to be addressed in Sri Lanka. Although formal equality is enshrined in the Constitution, discriminatory laws and policies that are in contravention of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) continue to exist. This coupled with the lack of political will hampers the empowerment of women and restricts their ability to fully exercise their rights and access entitlements. The CEDAW Committee in the Concluding Observations on Sri Lanka issued in 2011 and 2017, has given considerable importance to these issues and called upon the government to harmonize domestic legislation in line with the Convention, repeal or amend discriminatory laws, establish national machinery for the advancement of women, such as the National Commission on Women, and adopt temporary special measures to expedite the achievement of substantive equality. In Sri Lanka women have, as in other parts of the world sought to use the emancipatory nature of the law to combat discrimination against women, promote their rights and improve their status. In particular, within the South Asian region, campaigns and movements for change through law reform have to a great extent focused on issues that have been traditionally relegated to the private sphere, such as violence against women and family law. While law has been viewed, and at times has functioned, as a vehicle for social change, we must also be mindful of existing unequal power relations and structural inequalities that impact upon the implementation and exercise of the law, which can often result in denying remedies to those most affected. Although there continue to be reports of widespread gender based violence (GBV) in Sri Lanka, social stigma continues to curtail reporting, and remedies and support mechanisms are still limited. Often programmes that seek to address GBV are not wholly successful since they do not address the root causes, i.e. patriarchy, discrimination and the resulting inequality and disempowerment of women. Globally, we have witnessed social mores shifting towards conservatism and increasing anti-rights rhetoric, especially on gender, resulting in attempts to control women’s sexuality, reproductive capacity, financial autonomy and even freedom of movement. This makes women, especially those who are already marginalized, such as differently abled, conflict-affected and those living in poverty, vulnerable to violence, and restricts their ability to exercise their reproductive rights. In this context, the Compendium on the application of laws to address cases relating to reproductive rights and GBV is extremely useful. It adopts a holistic approach that recognises and addresses the inter-linkages between violence and reproductive rights and the role of the law in prevention, protection and enabling access to remedies. Given that many service providers and duty bearers may not be well-informed on the extent of laws and remedies that are available with regard to gender based violence and reproductive rights, the Compendium is a powerful educational and awareness raising tool. For activists it could function as a reference document as it is both comprehensive and accessible. The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka welcomes the publication of the Compendium on Law, Gender Based Violence and Reproductive Rights and is appreciative of the opportunity to partner with Prof. Savitri Goonesekere and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) on this initiative. Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka II