• State Minister claims move has Justice Minister’s blessings, 

The State Ministry of Women and Child Affairs is to present a proposal to the concerned parties to set aside one day per week for the hearing of cases related to females and children in every court, The Daily Morning learnt.

Speaking to The Daily Morning, the State Minister of Women and Child Affairs, Geetha Kumarasinghe said that a large number of cases related to incidents involving females and children such as domestic violence, sexual abuse and child abuse are pending before courts. She said that women and children, who are the victims of such incidents, often face various problems and inconveniences due to the lengthy time it takes to conclude such cases. "In most cases, it takes almost 10 years to complete a case related to incidents like child abuse and sexual abuse. During this whole period, females and children have to go before courts. Sometimes, those who were children at the time of the incident are married when the trial is over. In such situations, they have to face a lot of difficulties. There is also a possibility that the culprits will not be punished because some of the relevant cases are withdrawn by the victims," she claimed. Considering these facts, Kumarasinghe said that she hopes to request the relevant institutions to take necessary measures to set aside one day a week for such cases so that the cases related to females and children can be heard and concluded in a short period of time. "I discussed this with the Minister of Justice, Prison Affairs and Constitutional Reforms, President's Counsel Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe. He also agreed to this proposal. Therefore, I have instructed the relevant officials to take necessary steps to go ahead with this proposal."

Speaking to The Daily Morning on an earlier occasion, Kumarasinghe said that women and children who come to Police stations to lodge complaints are often inconvenienced due to the system that is currently in place. She said that they feel uncomfortable especially when they have to lodge complaints in front of many Police officers and people who come to Police stations for various needs. Considering the matter, she said that the Government is focused on setting up a separate place within the Police stations to record the complaints of women and children, and to assign four woman Police officers at each such place to receive related complaints.