HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION OF SRI LANKA, Annual Report 2018 For persons engaged in drug trafficking from within prisons, the solution, it was noted was to strengthen the security of prisons and be vigilant about officers who may facilitate this conduct. Stemming from the eroded confidence in the administration of justice in Sri Lanka, the Commission also observed that a recent trend has emerged in certain sections of society questioning the strong public support of capital punishment. The Commission also drew attention to the fact that Sri Lanka voted in support of a resolution calling for a moratorium on executions adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2016. It urged the President to do away with the decision to re-implement capital punishment, as it will also affect the international recognition Sri Lanka has earned by embarking on a path of democracy. It further suggested the introduction of a series of strong and long term policies aimed at addressing serious crimes including drug trafficking. ▪ Proposals to address religious intolerance in the aftermath of the anti-Muslim violence in Digana By letter dated 07 March 2018 addressing His Excellency the President, the Commission drew attention to the religious intolerance rapidly spreading across the country as evidenced by the violence in Digana. The Commission observed that the Digana violence was not a mere isolated incident but the culmination of a series of violent incidents perpetrated against the Muslim community during the months preceding Digana, especially in Ginthota and Ampara. HRCSL stated that its preliminary inquiries into these incidents have revealed that violence perpetrated is premeditated and usually instigated not by locals to the area but by organized outside groups over random trivial incidents. While Muslim and Sinhala communities in the affected areas have lived in harmony for many years, this organized violence has resulted in creating fear, disharmony, and hatred amongst local communities. The Commission urged authorities to strictly implement the law against persons committing hate speech, and to swiftly apprehend the perpetrators as well as persons aiding and abetting the perpetrators and deal with them according to law. The Commission specifically referred to the need to prosecute persons under Section 3 of the International 32