"text":"<p>The first Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th century B.C., probably from northern India. Buddhism was introduced circa 250 B.C., and the first kingdoms developed at the cities of Anuradhapura (from circa 200 B.C. to circa A.D. 1000) and Polonnaruwa (from about 1070 to 1200). In the 14th century, a south Indian dynasty established a Tamil kingdom in northern Sri Lanka. The Portuguese controlled the coastal areas of the island in the 16th century followed by the Dutch in the 17th century. The island was ceded to the British in 1796, became a crown colony in 1802, and was formally united under British rule by 1815. As Ceylon, it became independent in 1948; its name was changed to Sri Lanka in 1972. Prevailing tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted into war in July 1983. Fighting between the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) continued for over a quarter century. Although Norway brokered peace negotiations that led to a cease-fire in 2002, the fighting slowly resumed and was again in full force by 2006. The government defeated the LTTE in May 2009.</p> <p>During the post-conflict years under President Mahinda RAJAPAKSA, the government initiated infrastructure development projects, many of which were financed by loans from China. His regime faced significant allegations of human rights violations and a shrinking democratic space for civil society. In 2015, a new coalition government headed by President Maithripala SIRISENA of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and Prime Minister Ranil WICKREMESINGHE of the United National Party came to power with pledges to advance economic, governance, anti-corruption, reconciliation, justice, and accountability reforms. However, implementation of these reforms has been uneven. In October 2018, President SIRISENA attempted to oust Prime Minister WICKREMESINGHE, swearing in former President RAJAPAKSA as the new prime minister and issuing an order to dissolve the Parliament and hold elections. This sparked a seven-week constitutional crisis that ended when the Supreme Court ruled SIRISENA’s actions unconstitutional, RAJAPAKSA resigned, and WICKREMESINGHE was reinstated. In November 2019, Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA won the presidential election and appointed his brother, Mahinda, prime minister. Since Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA’s election, there have been concerns about his administration’s commitment to pursuing justice, human rights, and accountability reforms, as well as the risks to foreign creditors that Sri Lanka faces given its ongoing economic crisis. A combination of factors including the impact of the worldwide COVID pandemic; severe shortages of food, medicine, and fuel; and power outages have triggered increasingly violent protests in Columbo. Longtime parliamentarian and former five-time prime minister, Ranil WICKREMESINGHE replaced Mahinda RAJAPASKA as prime-minister in mid-May 2022, with a mandate to resolve the country's economic problems.</p>"
"text":"the population is primarily concentrated within a broad wet zone in the southwest, urban centers along the eastern coast, and on the Jaffna Peninsula in the north"
},
"Natural hazards":{
"text":"occasional cyclones and tornadoes"
},
"Geography - note":{
"text":"strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes; Adam's Bridge is a chain of limestone shoals between the southeastern coast of India and the northwestern coast of Sri Lanka; geological evidence suggests that this 50-km long Bridge once connected India and Sri Lanka; ancient records seem to indicate that a foot passage was possible between the two land masses until the 15th century when the land bridge broke up in a cyclone"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> data represent main languages spoken by the population aged 10 years and older; shares sum to more than 100% because some respondents gave more than one answer on the census; English is commonly used in government and is referred to as the \"link language\" in the constitution"
"text":"the population is primarily concentrated within a broad wet zone in the southwest, urban centers along the eastern coast, and on the Jaffna Peninsula in the north"
"text":"deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by poaching and urbanization; coastal degradation from mining activities and increased pollution; coral reef destruction; freshwater resources being polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff; waste disposal; air pollution in Colombo"
},
"Environment - international agreements":{
"party to":{
"text":"Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands"
},
"signed, but not ratified":{
"text":"Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Marine Life Conservation"
}
},
"Air pollutants":{
"particulate matter emissions":{
"text":"15.25 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)"
},
"carbon dioxide emissions":{
"text":"23.36 megatons (2016 est.)"
},
"methane emissions":{
"text":"10.95 megatons (2020 est.)"
}
},
"Climate":{
"text":"tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October)"
"text":"<em>due to serious macroeconomic challenges, significant reduction in 2022 cereal output, and high food prices</em> - severe macroeconomic challenges, mostly reflecting dwindling foreign currency reserves after revenues from merchandise exports, remittances, and from the tourist sector declined dramatically over the last year, have had a negative impact on the country’s capacity to import cereals; the 2022 cereal production sharply declined due to a government ordered reduction in the application of chemical fertilizers; unprecedentedly high food prices are constraining economic access to food for a majority of households"
"text":"Colombo may derive from the Sinhala \"kolon thota,\" meaning \"port on the river\" (referring to the Kelani River that empties into the Indian Ocean at Colombo); alternatively, the name may derive from the Sinhala \"kola amba thota\" meaning \"harbor with mango trees\"; it is also possible that the Portuguese named the city after Christopher COLUMBUS, who lived in Portugal for many years (as Cristovao COLOMBO) before discovering the Americas for the Spanish crown in 1492 - not long before the Portuguese made their way to Sri Lanka in 1505; Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte translates as \"Resplendent City of Growing Victory\" in Sinhala"
"text":"9 provinces; Central, Eastern, North Central, Northern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western"
},
"Independence":{
"text":"4 February 1948 (from the UK)"
},
"National holiday":{
"text":"Independence Day (National Day), 4 February (1948)"
},
"Constitution":{
"history":{
"text":"several previous; latest adopted 16 August 1978, certified 31 August 1978"
},
"amendments":{
"text":"proposed by Parliament; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote of its total membership, certification by the president of the republic or the Parliament speaker, and in some cases approval in a referendum by absolute majority of valid votes; amended many times, last in 2020"
}
},
"Legal system":{
"text":"mixed legal system of Roman-Dutch civil law, English common law, Jaffna Tamil customary law, and Muslim personal law"
},
"International law organization participation":{
"text":"has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt"
},
"Citizenship":{
"citizenship by birth":{
"text":"no"
},
"citizenship by descent only":{
"text":"at least one parent must be a citizen of Sri Lanka"
},
"dual citizenship recognized":{
"text":"no, except in cases where the government rules it is to the benefit of Sri Lanka"
"text":"Cabinet appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister"
},
"elections/appointments":{
"text":"president directly elected by preferential majority popular vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 16 November 2019 (next to be held in 2024); prime minister appointed by the president from among members of Parliament for a 5-year term)"
"text":"Ranil WICKREMESINGHE elected president by Parliament on 20 July 2022; WICKREMESINGH 134 votes, Dullas ALAHAPPERUNA 82 votes"
},
"note":"<strong>Note</strong>: amid public protests which began in March 2022, President Gotabaya RAJAPAKSE fled the country on 13 July and Ranil WICKREMESINGHE became acting president; RAJAPAKSE announced his resignation on the 14th, which was accepted by the speaker of Parliament the following day; Parliament on 20 July elected WICKREMESINGHE as president; vote - Ranil WICKREMESINGHE - 134, Dullas ALAHAPPERUMA - 82"
"text":"unicameral Parliament (225 seats; 196 members directly elected in multi-seat district constituencies by proportional representation vote using a preferential method in which voters select 3 candidates in order of preference; remaining 29 seats, referred to as the \"national list\" are allocated by each party secretary according to the island wide proportional vote the party obtains; members serve 5-year terms)"
"text":"Supreme Court of the Republic (consists of the chief justice and 9 justices); note - the court has exclusive jurisdiction to review legislation"
},
"judge selection and term of office":{
"text":"chief justice nominated by the Constitutional Council (CC), a 9-member high-level advisory body, and appointed by the president; other justices nominated by the CC and appointed by the president on the advice of the chief justice; all justices can serve until age 65"
},
"subordinate courts":{
"text":"Court of Appeals; High Courts; Magistrates' Courts; municipal and primary courts"
"text":"Crusaders for Democracy or CFD [Ganeshalingam CHANDRALINGAM]<br>Eelam People's Democratic Party or EPDP [Douglas DEVANANDA]<br>Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front or EPRLF [Suresh PREMACHANDRAN]<br>Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi or ITAK [Mavai SENATHIRAJAH]<br>Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna or JVP [Anura Kumara DISSANAYAKE]<br>Jathika Hela Urumaya or JHU [Karunarathna PARANAWITHANA, Ven. Hadigalle Wimalasara THERO]<br>National Peoples Power or JVP [Anura Kumara DISSANAYAKE]<br>People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam or PLOTE [D. SIDDARTHAN]<br>Samagi Jana Balawegaya or SJB [Sajith PREMADASA]<br>Sri Lanka Freedom Party or SLFP [Maithripala SIRISENA]<br>Sri Lanka Muslim Congress or SLMC [Rauff HAKEEM]<br>Sri Lanka People's Freedom Alliance or SLPFA [Mahinda RAJAPAKSA] (includes SLPFP, SLPP, and several smaller parties)<br>Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (Sri Lanka's People's Front) or SLPP [G. L. PEIRIS]<br>Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization or TELO [Selvam ADAIKALANATHAN]<br>Tamil National Alliance or TNA [Rajavarothiam SAMPANTHAN] (includes ITAK, PLOTE, TELO)<br>Tamil National People's Front or TNPF [Gajendrakumar PONNAMBALAM]<br>United National Front for Good Governance or UNFGG [Ranil WICKREMESINGHE] (coalition includes JHU, UNP)<br>United National Party or UNP [Ranil WICKREMESINGHE]"
"text":"yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other larger panel depicts a yellow lion holding a sword on a maroon rectangular field that also displays a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears as a border around the entire flag and extends between the two panels; the lion represents Sinhalese ethnicity, the strength of the nation, and bravery; the sword demonstrates the sovereignty of the nation; the four bo leaves - symbolizing Buddhism and its influence on the country - stand for the four virtues of kindness, friendliness, happiness, and equanimity; orange signifies Sri Lankan Tamils, green Sri Lankan Moors, and maroon the Sinhalese majority; yellow denotes other ethnic groups; also referred to as the Lion Flag"
},
"National symbol(s)":{
"text":"lion, water lily; national colors: maroon, yellow"
"text":"Ancient City of Polonnaruwa (c); Ancient City of Sigiriya (c); Sacred City of Anuradhapura (c); Old Town of Galle and its Fortifications (c); Sacred City of Kandy (c); Sinharaja Forest Reserve (n); Rangiri Dambulla Cave Temple (c); Central Highlands of Sri Lanka (n)"
"text":"<p>Sri Lanka’s economy has historically relied upon government-guided market investments, and since 2009, several sectors have been excluded from any privatization efforts. Major infrastructure development of rural and civil war-impacted areas remains a major focus, as does small business development. Sri Lanka’s longstanding high debt and large civil service have contributed to historically high budget deficits and remain a concern. Sri Lankan tourism soared since the end of conflict with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, but the 2018 constitutional crisis, the 2019 Easter bombings, and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic have since destabilized this key industry, leading Sri Lanka to nearly expend all foreign currency reserves. Regionally, Sri Lanka has engaged China on major infrastructure projects and currently owes $6.5 billion, which may soon be restructured.</p> <p>Fiscally, Sri Lanka’s focus on domestic goods—instead of export growth—further increased Sri Lanka’s trade imbalance, despite its EU preferential trade status allowing tax-free garment and gem exports to the EU. From 2019 until its repeal in 2021, Sri Lanka’s agricultural import ban on chemical fertilizers resulted in disastrous reductions in rice, tea, and rubber yields, increasing Sri Lanka’s import dependencies for these goods. The ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War has also decreased fuel supplies and significantly increased prices. India is providing both direct fertilizer and fuel aid to offset these shortages. Power shortages plague business climates, and further stoke existing labor shortages. Additionally Sri Lanka is also considering privatizing several state-owned entities to try to spur industrial and service sectors’ growth.</p> <p>Monetarily, Sri Lanka remains in a dire position, further exacerbated by the 2019 tax cuts that contributed to the country’s ongoing economic calamity. Already one of the highest indebted emerging markets, Sri Lanka defaulted on its current public debt payments in May 2022, and its ongoing currency crisis has crippled domestic revenues, tax collections, and economic activity, ushering in the country’s worst economic crisis since independence in 1948. As a result, inflation is skyrocketing (nearing 40%), and food, fuel, and medicine shortages have led to widespread unrest and economic collapse. Sri Lanka currently seeks an immediate $3 million IMF bridge loan and $75 million in foreign currency to pay for essential goods and fuel.The World Bank, India, and the G7 countries have agreed to aid Sri Lanka in securing debt relief, but the IMF maintains that Sri Lanka must raise interest rates and taxes to secure any loan.</p> <p>Current Sri Lankan priorities focus on the following goals:</p> <ul> <li>Securing a bridge loan from the IMF;</li> <li>Improving its foreign currency reserves through continued promotion of tourism and privatization of state enterprises;</li> <li>Recovering from COVID-19 pandemic-related economic disruptions and demand shocks;</li> <li>Identifying alternative fuel supply chains; and</li> <li>Restructuring preexisting infrastructure debts to China.</li> </ul>"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> covers central government debt and excludes debt instruments directly owned by government entities other than the treasury (e.g. commercial bank borrowings of a government corporation); the data includes treasury debt held by foreign entities as well as intragovernmental debt; intragovernmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement; sub-national entities are usually not permitted to sell debt instruments"
"text":"Sri Lanka’s fixed-line telephony market was one of the very few in the world to experience a significant upsurge in subscriptions in 2020; while the country suffers from a relatively poor fixed-line infrastructure and a correspondingly strong mobile sector, demand for traditional phone services increased 14% in 2020; preliminary results suggest a further jump of up to 13% can also be expected in 2021; this will take Sri Lanka’s fixed-line penetration to levels not seen since 2013; the most reason behind the market’s reversal of fortunes is the Covid-19 crisis and Sri Lanka’s ensuring lock downs; these forced much of the population back inside and reverting to ‘traditional’ methods of communication for both voice and data services; the fixed broadband market was equally robust, growing 20% in 2020 alone; Sri Lanka possesses a relatively low number of computers per household so the fixed broadband market’s success comes off a small base; the one area of the telecommunications market that experienced a fall was the mobile segment; up until the start of the pandemic, Sri Lanka had a very high mobile penetration rate of 155%; this near-saturation level reflected the preponderance for subscribers to carry multiple SIM cards to take advantage of cheaper on-net call rates; the reduction in demand and traffic because of the pandemic led to a sharp drop in the number of active subscriptions, down to just 135% – a 17% decline in just one year; the market is expected to bounce back quickly, as soon as the country eases back on its lock down measures and reduces travel restrictions; it will also be boosted, come 2022, by the anticipated launch of commercial 5G mobile services. (2021)"
"text":"fixed-line roughly 11 per 100 and mobile-cellular nearly 139 per 100; national trunk network consists of digital microwave radio relay and fiber-optic links; fixed wireless local loops have been installed; competition is strong in mobile cellular systems and mobile cellular subscribership is increasing (2020)"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced a downturn, particularly in mobile device production; progress toward 5G implementation has resumed, as well as upgrades to infrastructure; consumer spending on telecom services has increased due to the surge in demand for capacity and bandwidth; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home is still evident, and the spike in this area has seen growth opportunities for development of new tools and increased services"
"text":"government operates 5 TV channels and 19 radio channels; multi-channel satellite and cable TV subscription services available; 25 private TV stations and about 43 radio stations; 6 non-profit TV stations and 4 radio stations"
"text":"Sri Lanka Armed Forces: Sri Lanka Army (includes National Guard and the Volunteer Force), Sri Lanka Navy (includes Marine Corps), Sri Lanka Air Force, Sri Lanka Coast Guard; Civil Security Department (Home Guard); Ministry of Public Security: Sri Lanka National Police (2022)",
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> the Sri Lanka Police includes the Special Task Force, a paramilitary unit responsible for counterterrorism and counterinsurgency operations; it coordinates internal security operations with the military"
"text":"the military's inventory consists mostly of Chinese and Russian-origin equipment with a smaller mix of material from countries such as India and the US; since 2010, China, India, and the US have been the leading suppliers of arms to Sri Lanka (2022)"
"text":"Sri Lanka traditionally has had close security ties to India; India participated in the counter-insurgency war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) from 1987-1991, losing over 1,000 soldiers in the conflict; the Sri Lankan and Indian militaries continue to conduct exercises together, and India trains over 1,000 Sri Lankan soldiers per year; however, since the end of the war with LTTE, Sri Lanka has also increased military ties with China, including acquiring military equipment, hosting naval port calls, and sending personnel to China for training<br><br>since the end of the war with LTTE, the Sri Lankan military has increased its role in a range of commercial sectors including agriculture, hotels, leisure, and restaurants; this expansion has been particularly discernible in the majority Tamil-populated northern and eastern provinces where a large portion of the Army reportedly remained deployed as of 2021 (2022)"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in Appendix-T"
"text":"12,000 (civil war; more than half displaced prior to 2008; many of the more than 480,000 IDPs registered as returnees have not reached durable solutions) (2021)"
"text":"Sri Lanka is primarily a source and, to a much lesser extent, a destination country for men, women, and children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking; the majority of trafficking cases involve traffickers forcing Sri Lankan workers into labor overseas; men, women, and children are subjected to forced labor in the Middle East, Asia, Europe, and the United States in construction, garment manufacturing, and domestic service; authorities have identified labor trafficking victims among Sri Lankan female migrant workers who seek employment in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Japan, and South Korea; traffickers force children, individuals with physical deformities, and those from socially vulnerable groups to beg or engage in criminal activity in Sri Lanka’s largest cities"
"text":"Tier 2 Watch List — Sri Lanka does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so; efforts include convicting traffickers under its trafficking statute, identifying victims, and working on anti-trafficking training and raising awareness; however, some officials reportedly complicit in trafficking are inadequately investigated; fewer victims were identified in country and abroad; social and legal assistance for victims remained inadequate and inconsistent; the Sri Lankan Bureau of Foreign Employment did not refer potential trafficking cases to police for criminal investigation; police continued to arrest trafficking victims for prostitution, vagrancy, and immigration offenses; child sex trafficking victims remained in government detention centers (2020)"
