Sri Lanka is a multi-party republic whose President and 225-seat Parliament are elected to 6-year terms. The President has executive power, while Parliament exercises legislative power. The European Union Election Observation Mission deemed the Presidential election free and fair despite irregularities. They also reported on the election boycott by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which resulted in a lower than 1% turnout of eligible voters in the north. From 1983 until 2001 the government and the LTTE were at war over the latter's desire to institute a separate ethnic Tamil state by force.

In 2001 a ceasefire was announced, and the next year a formal accord was signed, but both sides have been accused of violating the accord. Negotiations facilitated by the Norwegian government were suspended by the LTTE in 2003. Hostilities are again under way. There are 11 women in Parliament and 3 women in the Cabinet; moreover, a woman completed her second term as President in 2004. 34 Tamils and 24 Muslims were elected to Parliament. The judiciary is independent in law and in practice. Laws that discriminate against women in marriage, divorce and property rights are still in place.

The LTTE operates its own court system, but using judges who reportedly have little legal training. The LTTE is accused of having refused access to political prisoners by the International Committee of the Red Cross. Security forces are accused of human right abuses. Emergency regulations enacted following the 2004 tsunami and again following the assassination of the Foreign Minister remain in effect, giving the armed forces the power of arrest without warrant. Detainees under the Emergency Regulations may be held for up to a year without trial.

Paramilitary groups are accused of political killings, possibly with the assistance of the government. The LTTE is also accused of politically motivated killings and human rights abuses. The UN Human Rights Council is investigating 16,500 cases of disappearance by security forces, some of which have been pending for 10 years. The ongoing conflict has prevented Education International and its members from continuing with the construction and equipping of schools in the area struck by the tsunami.
Transparency International identified nepotism and cronyism as common corrupt practices.

Freedom of speech and of the press are guaranteed. The Emergency Regulations allow the government to censor publications, performances or broadcasts believed likely to cause public disorder. Some journalists are reported to practise self-censorship as a result of pressure from both security forces and the LTTE. The LTTE tightly restricts the media in areas under its control and reportedly intimidates Tamil journalists. However, Internet access is not restricted.

Sri Lanka is an origin and destination country for women and children trafficked for sexual exploitation and forced labour, largely in domestic service. Boys and girls are victims of paedophiles in the sex tourism industry.

Homosexual activity is a criminal offence, but the law is not enforced. Police are accused of harassment and extortion of money from gay men. Social discrimination is reported against those involved in HIV prevention and those considered at high risk for HIV/AIDS.

UNICEF reports that Sri Lanka is one of the few developing countries to have achieved some measure of success in relation to the UN Millennium Development Goals. Education is tuition-free through university. 85% of children under age 16 attend school. In addition to the government schools, Assisted Private Schools are available, and they do not levy fees. The language of instruction in government schools is Sinhali or Tamil depending on the region of the country. Private and International Schools, where English is the language of instruction, are increasing in urban areas.

Following 6 years of primary education, pupils write a scholarship exam to qualify for admittance to preferred secondary schools. 5 years of lower secondary education end with examinations to qualify for upper secondary education, after which competitive university entrance examinations take place. 18% of children do not complete lower secondary education, with the poor affected disproportionately. At the upper secondary level, 42% of students who try the national examination are successful.

The university system has limited capacity and only 11% of those who qualify are able to enrol. A shortage of teachers in science, mathematics and English is acute in Tamil schools, and poor regions lack access to science and technology subjects. The unequal distribution of teachers among regions exacerbates regional disparities. Schools in rural areas have only basic facilities and are often understaffed. Qualified teachers tend to work in urban schools, for reasons such as a lack of suitable rural accommodation and of basic teaching facilities in rural schools.

Following the 2004 tsunami, the National Child Protection Agency initiated a campaign to protect orphaned or displaced children from paedophiles. Physical abuse related to corporal punishment is reported to take place in schools. Among the civilians killed in artillery and rocket attacks on a school in 2006 were at least 50 who had already been displaced by battles between Tamil Tiger rebels and Sri Lankan security forces.

A 1-year programme begins at age 4.

Education is compulsory for ages 5 to 13. Primary school begins at age 5 and continues for 5 years. 49% of students are girls. At this level 2% of education is private. There are 72,654 primary teachers (79% female). The pupil/teacher ratio (PTR) is 23 : 1.

Secondary education begins at age 10 and lasts 8 years. At this level 2% of education is private. The Gross Enrolment Rate is 81%. There are 117,851 secondary teachers, 62,527 (64% female) in lower secondary and 55,324 (62% female) in upper secondary education. The PTR is 22 : 1 in lower secondary and 17 : 1 in upper secondary education.

9,203 Sri Lankan students are studying abroad, mainly in the UK (2,267), Australia (2,117), the USA (1,964), Japan (615) and India (391).

Discrimination against disability is prohibited, but it is reported to occur in education and in other state services. There are 8 vocational training schools for persons with physical and mental disabilities, as well as a programme of job training and placement for graduates. NGOs operate schools for persons with disabilities. Disabled children have difficulty reaching school, because little public transport is available, the route often traverses difficult terrain and they often have to depend on family members to travel. This problem of access outweighs incentives available to disabled children, such as free school books, school uniforms and, in some schools, mid-day meals.

The law does not provide for the granting of asylum or refugee status in accordance with the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees or its 1967 Protocol. The government has not established a system for protecting refugees. It cooperates with the UNHCR to assist internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees. 268 camps house many of the 340,000 IDPs uprooted by the conflict. 50,000 primarily Tamil IDPs have not been able resettle because of the ongoing hostilities. Some 46,000 Muslims displaced by the LTTE live in or near welfare centres.

The Vedas, the indigenous people of Sri Lanka, are fewer than 1,000 in number. Their traditional way of life is protected by law, and they have the same rights of participation as other Sri Lankans, but those who follow a traditional lifestyle are marginalised. About 1 million Tamils of Indian origin live in Sri Lanka. Some 300,000 did not qualify for citizenship and faced discrimination in the allocation of funds for education.

In 2003 full citizenship was granted to over 460,000 Tamils (known as tea estate Tamils). Local and hill Tamils report they suffer systematic discrimination in education, employment and social benefits.

For a number of years criticism has been levied at the LTTE for its tight regulation of many aspects of life in the territory under its control, including academic institutions. During the peace process a number of LTTE members were sent on study tours of Western democracies, including educational opportunities on the basics of academic freedom. It was considered encouraging that the LTTE was exposing its leaders to uncensored academic inquiry. But these initiatives have come to a stop with the resumption of hostilities.

Equal rights are provided in law for all citizens; however, instances occur of discrimination based on gender and ethnicity. Equal employment opportunities are provided in the public sector, but in the private sector women have no protection against discrimination and are paid less than men for work of equal value. They are also reported to experience a glass ceiling and obstacles to promotion to supervisory positions. Women constitute half the work force but largely occupy casual, low-paid, low-skilled jobs.

Issues of family law are dealt with by each ethnic or religious group. There is no provision for marriage before age 18, except for Muslims who may follow customary practice and marry at 15. The law does not institutionalise female inheritance and offer protection from discriminatory religious and cultural practices.

Sexual harassment is a criminal offence, but the law is rarely enforced. Domestic violence is illegal, but the legislation is enforced sporadically. Laws exist against procuring and trafficking of women, but women and girls continue to be trafficked for sexual exploitation and forced labour.

The minimum age of employment is 14, but younger children can work with their parents in family agriculture or in technical training. Children's labour cannot be such as to deprive them of compulsory education. Legislation to proscribe the worst forms of child labour is not in place, but a start has been made with the identification of 50 occupations as forms of child labour in which children under 18 are not to be employed. The definition of child abuse has been broadened to include the involvement of children in war.

Forced or compulsory labour is prohibited, but children are reported to be victims of debt bondage. A comprehensive national plan to combat the trafficking of children for exploitative employment has been developed by the government in cooperation with the ILO. Rehabilitation camps have been established for trafficking victims. Trafficking of boys is a problem, with an estimated 6,000 boys aged 8 to 15 labouring as sex workers at resorts. The LTTE is accused of using children as young as 13 in battle and of forcibly recruiting children as young as 8.

Workers have the right to form and join trade unions, and 7 workers may form a union. Most unions are affiliated with political parties, except for independent unions in the public sector. Some 20% of the work force is unionised, rising to 70% among plantation workers. Public sector employees also have high rates of unionisation. Collective bargaining is permitted, but it is not widely practised. Only some 50 companies have collective agreements. Workers have the right to strike, except those deemed as providing essential services. Labour laws apply in export processing zones, though union rights violations there have been charged by the International Trade Union Confederation.

Forced or bonded labour is illegal, but some rural children serve in debt bondage as domestic servants. There is no national minimum wage. Wage boards set minimum wages and working conditions by sector and industry. The established minimum wages do not provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. The work week is 45 hours over 5½ days.