Advisor Appointed for the Sub-committee on Gender Issues in the Sri Lanka Peace Process

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Country/entity: Sri Lanka
Region: Asia and Pacific
Agreement name: Advisor Appointed for the Sub-committee on Gender Issues in the Sri Lanka Peace Process
Date: 5 Feb 2003
Agreement status: Unilateral document
Interim arrangement: Yes
Agreement/conflict level: Interstate/intrastate conflict(s)
Sri Lankan Civil War (1983 - 2009)
The roots of the Sri Lanka conflict lay in British colonial policy which controlled the island from 1802 until 1948. During the early 1800s, the British brought Tamils from mainland India to work on the various plantations for tea, coffee and rubber, changing Sri Lanka's the demographic make-up. Upon independence, Sinhalese nationalism dominated the political sphere and introduced discriminatory policies against the Tamil minority straining relations and sparking protests. Armed Tamil resistance first came in the form of assassinations of moderate Tamils and opposition politicians in the mid-1970s. However, it was the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam's (LTTE) attack on checkpoint Four Four Bravo, which marked the turning point, sparking pogroms against Tamils in Sinhalese majority areas. This incident, known as Black July, is widely considered to the beginning of the civil war.

The first round of peace talks were backed by India, which had deployed the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in 1987, and led to the 1987 Indo-Sri Lanka Accord. The Accord was successful in persuading the majority of insurgency groups to lay down arms. However, the strongest Tamil insurgency group, the LTTE, was not party to the talks and refused to disarm, sparking direct conflict between the IPKF and the LTTE until IPKF withdrawal 1990. Following the withdrawal, the LTTE consolidated their power in the North and East sparking another intense and bloody war with the central government that lasted until 2002 when another peace process was launched under the auspices of Norwegian negotiators. The second round of peace talks, however, only continued until April 2003 and in March 2004, a large faction of LTTE cadres split from the main organization damaging LTTE unity. The LTTE were defeated militarily by a large-scale government assault in 2009, however, the conditions for peace remain uncertain.
Stage: Pre-negotiation/process
Conflict nature: Government/territory
Peace process: Sri Lanka LTTE 2002 onward process
Parties: Norwegian Government unilateral announcement, but in response to request by Government of Sri Lanka; Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE.
Third parties: -
Description: Short press release detailing the consensual appointment of Dr. Astrid Heiberg as an advisor to the Sub-committee of Gender Issues.

Agreement document: LK_030205_Advisor Appointed for the Sub-committee on Gender Issues in the Sri Lanka Peace Process.pdf (opens in new tab) | Download PDF

Groups

Children/youth: No specific mention.
Disabled persons: No specific mention.
Elderly/age: No specific mention.
Migrant workers: No specific mention.
Racial/ethnic/national group: No specific mention.
Religious groups: No specific mention.
Indigenous people: No specific mention.
Other groups: No specific mention.
Refugees/displaced persons: No specific mention.
Social class: No specific mention.

Gender

Women, girls and gender: Page 1, At the request of the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Norway has appointed Dr. Astrid N. Heiberg as an advisor to the Sub-Committee on Gender Issues. ... The parties to the peace process established the Sub-Committee to ensure the effective inclusion of gender issues in the peace process.

[Summary] Paragraph two provides a biography of Dr Astrid N. Heiberg.
Men and boys: No specific mention.
LGBTI: No specific mention.
Family: No specific mention.

State definition

Nature of state (general): No specific mention.
State configuration: No specific mention.
Self determination: No specific mention.
Referendum: No specific mention.
State symbols: No specific mention.
Independence/secession: No specific mention.
Accession/unification: No specific mention.
Border delimitation: No specific mention.
Cross-border provision: No specific mention.

Governance

Political institutions (new or reformed): No specific mention.
Elections: No specific mention.
Electoral commission: No specific mention.
Political parties reform: No specific mention.
Civil society: No specific mention.
Traditional/religious leaders: No specific mention.
Public administration: No specific mention.
Constitution: No specific mention.

Power sharing

Political power sharing: No specific mention.
Territorial power sharing: No specific mention.
Economic power sharing: No specific mention.
Military power sharing: No specific mention.

Human rights and equality

Human rights/RoL general: No specific mention.
Bill of rights/similar: No specific mention.
Treaty incorporation: No specific mention.
Civil and political rights: No specific mention.
Socio-economic rights: No specific mention.

Rights related issues

Citizenship: No specific mention.
Democracy: No specific mention.
Detention procedures: No specific mention.
Media and communication: No specific mention.
Mobility/access: No specific mention.
Protection measures: No specific mention.
Other: No specific mention.

Rights institutions

NHRI: No specific mention.
Regional or international human rights institutions: No specific mention.

Justice sector reform

Criminal justice and emergency law: No specific mention.
State of emergency provisions: No specific mention.
Judiciary and courts: No specific mention.
Prisons and detention: No specific mention.
Traditional Laws: No specific mention.

Socio-economic reconstruction

Development or socio-economic reconstruction: No specific mention.
National economic plan: No specific mention.
Natural resources: No specific mention.
International funds: Page 1, ... At the forth session of peace negotiations in Thailand in January, the parties asked Norway to function as the facilitator for the Sub-Committee, as well as contribute financial support and appoint a senior expert to advise the sub-committee.
Business: No specific mention.
Taxation: No specific mention.
Banks: No specific mention.

Land, property and environment

Land reform/rights: No specific mention.
Pastoralist/nomadism rights: No specific mention.
Cultural heritage: No specific mention.
Environment: No specific mention.
Water or riparian rights or access: No specific mention.

Security sector

Security Guarantees: No specific mention.
Ceasefire: No specific mention.
Police: No specific mention.
Armed forces: No specific mention.
DDR: No specific mention.
Intelligence services: No specific mention.
Parastatal/rebel and opposition group forces: No specific mention.
Withdrawal of foreign forces: No specific mention.
Corruption: No specific mention.
Crime/organised crime: No specific mention.
Drugs: No specific mention.
Terrorism: No specific mention.

Transitional justice

Transitional justice general: No specific mention.
Amnesty/pardon: No specific mention.
Courts: No specific mention.
Mechanism: No specific mention.
Prisoner release: No specific mention.
Vetting: No specific mention.
Victims: No specific mention.
Missing persons: No specific mention.
Reparations: No specific mention.
Reconciliation: No specific mention.

Implementation

UN signatory: No specific mention.
Other international signatory: No specific mention.
Referendum for agreement: No specific mention.
International mission/force/similar: No specific mention.
Enforcement mechanism: No specific mention.
Related cases: No specific mention.
Source: http://www.peaceinsrilanka.org/insidepages/Pressrelease/RNG/PV/RNG06FebPV.html [archived hardcopy version (unrrecoverable via the Wayback Machine)]

Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

ADVISOR APPOINTED FOR THE SUB-COMMITTEE ON GENDER ISSUES iN THE SRI LANKA PEACE PROCESS

PRESS RELEASE

05 February 2003

At the request of the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Norway has appointed Dr. Astrid N. Heiberg as an advisor to the Sub-Committee on Gender lssues.

Dr. Heiberg will be present at the first meeting of the Sub-Committee to be held in March.

The parties to the peace process established the Sub-Committee to ensure the effective inclusion of gender issues in the peace process.

At the fourth session of peace negotiations in Thailand in January, the parties asked Norway to function as the facilitator for the Sub-Committee, as well as to contribute financial support and appoint a senior expert to advise the Sub-Committee.

Dr. Astrid N. Heiberg has broad experience with gender issues, human rights and humanitarian advocacy from Norway and internationally.

For several years she has been involved in University co-operation between Norway and Sri Lanka, with the involvement of leading academics from Colombo, Jaffna and Batticaloa.

She was President of the lnternational Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent 1997 - 2001, and President of the Norwegian Red Cross 1993 - 1999.

Dr. Heiberg was a member of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and lnhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment 1989 - 1993.

She also has had a distinguished career in Norwegian politics as Deputy Minister for Health and Social Affairs 1981 - 1985, Chair of the National Conservative Women's Association 1985 - 1989, Member of Parliament 1985 - 1989, Minister of Consumer Affairs and Government Administration in 1986, and First Deputy Chair of the Conservative Party 1990 -1991.

Dr. Heiberg is Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Oslo and is active on the boards of a number of Norwegian organizations.

Dr. Heiberg holds M.D. and Ph.D. degrees in psychiatry from the University of Oslo.