Since 2014, the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) has maintained a commitment to the development of meaningful legal infrastructure and local capacity efforts for the protection of Sri Lankans’ rights. Through strategic local partnerships—including with the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL), local civil society organizations (CSOs), and justice-sector actors—ABA ROLI’s programs have advanced transitional justice, promoted Internet freedom, and combated trafficking in persons (TIP) and wildlife trafficking in Sri Lanka.
Since 2023, ABA ROLI supports grassroots civil society and local lawyers in six of Sri Lanka’s nine provinces to promote and protect the right to freedom of religion or belief (FoRB). The goal is to promote awareness on and respect for FoRB among all communities; expand documentation of religiously motivated human rights violations and use this documentation to improve legal and public advocacy for FoRB in Sri Lanka. ABA ROLI also focuses on building the capacity of local partners to employ intersectional approaches to FoRB, particularly concerning gender. The program’s strategic priorities for 2024-2016, are promoting social cohesion, including through increased freedom of expression for all; strengthening legal infrastructure and civil society capacity to ensure equal rights for all; and empowering women and youth as agents of change. This work is done through the Asia Religious and Ethnic Freedom Consortium, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).