Message from UNFPA Representative, Mr. Alain Sibenaler As Representative of UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund in Sri Lanka, I am very happy to have partnered with the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) in developing this training guide on furthering the protection of the rights of women and the girl child. Human rights are violated every time a girl is married off under the age of 18, every time a child is denied an education and every time a person is subjected to abuse. Human rights also include sexual and reproductive health and rights and freedom from all forms of violence including gender based violence. However, still many women cannot freely decide the number, spacing or timing of their children. Some lack the information or means to make these choices, while others face coercion, discrimination or violence when they exercise these rights. Protecting women’s rights – including sexual and reproductive health and rights – of all people is a precondition for individual well-being and collective sustainable growth. The last few decades have seen the enactment of laws and policies protecting women’s rights and sexual and reproductive health and rights in many countries. UNFPA has been very closely working with government authorities, civil society organisations, academia and other relevant stakeholders in ensuring women’s rights, especially of those who are marginalised. For this purpose UNFPA has supported the development of a compendium for the HRCSL to highlight the reproductive rights in existing laws and by-laws in the legal and administrative systems of Sri Lanka, drafted by Prof. Savitri Goonesekere. Despite the progress in enacting laws and policies, there has been inconsistency in the enforcement of these laws and implementation of these policies. Many marginalized groups and vulnerable populations have seen limited progress. UNFPA continues to play the role of convener on issues around gender based violence in the UN system by chairing the Gender Theme Group and Forum against GBV. These forums provide a good platform to all relevant stakeholders to bring up relevant issues on GBV at a policy and grassroots level and take appropriate action. We hope that through this training manual the officers of the Human Rights Commission will become more familiar with gender based violence and women’s rights so that they will ensure that women and girls rights are protected and are also empowered to claim their rights. Mr. Alain Sibenaler UNFPA Representative Sri Lanka 03