offences and Constitutional case law on Art 11 (torture). [See Annex, section on Constitution]. The Muslim personal law on marriage recognizes the husband’s right to inflict “moderate chastisement.” However since Muslims are governed by the criminal law of the land and the Criminal justice system, marriage laws cannot be used as a defence. (See Annex). Non-Fatal Physical Injuries GBV and Law of Marriage This type of violence which infringes reproductive rights of women can also be a ground for divorce under the General Law of Marriage based on the General Marriage Ordinance (1907) applicable to all Sri Lankans except Muslims and Kandyan Sinhalese. Cruelty by causing non-fatal physical injuries is not a ground for divorce, but can be used as evidence to obtain a divorce on the ground of “constructive malicious desertion.” This phrase refers to evidence that a person engaged in cruel conduct so as to indicate a desire to force the spouse to leave the matrimonial home. Cruelty is not a direct ground for divorce, but can be a ground for a legal or judicial separation under order of a court. The legal principles on cruelty and divorce are not found in legislation or acts of parliament, but in principles on divorce developed by the courts. (See Annex). By contrast, both Kandyan law and Muslim law statutes passed by Parliament recognize that cruelty is a ground of divorce. Sinhala people of the Central Provinces are governed by an Act of Parliament that regulates the Kandyan laws of marriage and divorce, and Muslims by another statute. Proving cruelty in the General Law is not as easy as in these personal laws, as the idea of divorce for cruelty is not recognized as in Muslim law and Kandyan law, in an Act of Parliament or legislation dealing with the subject. Cruelty has to be separately linked to the divorce ground of “malicious desertion” by the male spouse which is the ground for divorce stated in the legislation. [See Annex]. The diversity in marriage laws and the approach to intra family violence has not been addressed in reforms for over a century, and since the colonial period. Dowry violence is not treated as a distinct offence in the Sri Lanka Penal Code unlike in other countries of South Asia. Similarly, acid throwing is not a specific crime of GBV though there are reports of such violence perpetrated against women. This violence must be prosecuted according to the offences on bodily harm defined earlier in a gender neutral manner, in the Penal Code. GBV Violence in Educational Institutions A separate Act of Parliament called the Ragging in Universities and Educational Institutions Act (1998) considers non-fatal physical injuries caused through acts of bullying in these institutions a criminal offence. Male students in Sri Lanka also suffer this type of violence, but female students are “ragged” or “bullied” by both senior male and female students. The reality of this type of bullying is captured in even the literature of a well-known writer like E R Sarathchandra in his book ‘Curfew and Full Moon,��� as an intrinsic dimension of university life. The Act of Parliament (1998), seeks to create an attitude of zero tolerance for this type of violence when perpetrated against men or women. Though the impact of women students can be different and therefore ragging can also become GBV, the Act adopts a gender neutral approach to ragging. [See Annex]. The University of Colombo has a Code of Sexual Harassment (2001-2002) which has been adopted by the council of the University as a by-law, and provides a procedure to address complaints of sexual harassment. 08 COMPENDIUM ON LAW, GENDER BASED VIOLENCE AND REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS