Sri Lanka’s Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus held discussions with the Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) and the Law and Society Trust (LST) on September 12, 2025, under the patronage of Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya and Caucus Chairperson, Minister of Women and Child Affairs, Saroja Savitri Paulraj, according to the Department of Communication of Parliament.
During the meeting, the WFD proposed avenues of support including gender-sensitive law-making, gender-responsive budgeting, and enhancing the role of the Caucus in increasing women’s labour force participation. The foundation also pledged research and policy support to strengthen Parliament as a gender-sensitive institution.
Caucus members emphasized the importance of addressing grassroots-level activism in addition to higher-level political engagement. They highlighted the need to mobilize women at the community level as a critical step toward meaningful change. The meeting also noted challenges faced by women parliamentarians and underscored the importance of establishing support mechanisms such as counselling.
The session further explored intergenerational dialogue to encourage young women’s entry into politics. LST representatives invited the Caucus members to participate in their programme scheduled from September 16 to 19, 2025.
Deputy Chairperson of Committees, MP Hemali Weerasekera, along with MPs (Dr.) Kaushalya Ariyarathne, Krishnan Kalaichelvi, Nilanthi Kottahachchi (Attorney-at-Law), Thushari Jayasingha (Attorney-at-Law), Anushka Thilakarathne (Attorney-at-Law), Deepthi Wasalage, Hiruni Wijesinghe (Attorney-at-Law), Oshani Umanga, Ambika Samivel, and Lakmali Hemachandra (Attorney-at-Law) also attended the meeting.
