Disability Rights and Elections in Sri Lanka

The Election Commission of Sri Lanka conducted a two-day BRIDGE workshop on Disability Rights and Elections from 12–13 January 2026 at its head office in Colombo. The workshop was facilitated by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) with support from the Strengthening Governance program, funded by the Government of Australia.

The workshop brought together 28 participants, including officials from the Election Commission and the Department of Social Services, representatives from accredited election observer organizations, and persons with disabilities, through various organizations of persons with disabilities. This inclusive participation ensured the meaningful representation of diverse lived experiences, including physical, sensory, intellectual, and psychosocial disabilities.

The primary objective was to enhance awareness, technical capacity, and collaboration among key electoral stakeholders to advance accessible and inclusive elections across the entire electoral cycle. This initiative directly complemented the Election Commission’s ongoing establishment of a Disability & Inclusion Unit (DIU), mandated to institutionalize disability inclusion within electoral processes, strengthen accountability, standardize inclusive practices, and ensure that no voter is excluded. While the DIU provides a critical institutional framework, its effectiveness depends on the capacity, coordination, and shared ownership of election officials and partners. The BRIDGE workshop served as a key intervention to translate policy commitments into practical knowledge, skills, and collaborative action.

In addition to strengthening institutional capacity, the workshop provided BRIDGE workshop facilitator accreditation to four semi-accredited facilitators, who had completed the Train the Facilitator module in January 2024. This approach supports the development of a sustainable national pool of skilled facilitators capable of implementing BRIDGE workshops across Sri Lanka in Sinhala, Tamil, and English.

The workshop was conducted in Sinhala and Tamil, with simultaneous interpretation provided throughout the sessions. To ensure full accessibility for Deaf participants, Sri Lankan Sign Language (SLSL) and Tamil Sign Language (TSL) interpretation were also provided. All workshop content and learning materials were made available in translated accessible formats to ensure equitable access to information for all participants.

Key thematic areas covered during the workshop included models of disability; the use of rights-based language; human rights frameworks and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; reasonable accommodations for voting; barriers to participation in political and public life; and legal and policy frameworks for disability-inclusive elections. By the conclusion of the workshop, participants were divided into three stakeholder groups, namely Election Commission, election observer organizations, and organizations of persons with disabilities & civil society. Each group developed practical and actionable recommendations outlining how they can support the Election Commission and the DIU in improving accessibility, participation, and inclusion for persons with disabilities within electoral processes.

The session was facilitated by a team of semi-accredited BRIDGE facilitators, including Nagalingam Regan and H.A. Eranga Pushpakumara from the ECSL, and Indraka Ubeysekara and Anojitha Sivaskaran from IFES Sri Lanka. It was conducted under the guidance of accrediting BRIDGE facilitators Silja Paasilinna, Country Director of IFES Sri Lanka, and workshop facilitator J.A.S.P. Jayasinghe, Deputy Commissioner of Elections of the ECSL. Upholding the core principle of “Nothing About Us Without Us,” the workshop benefited from the direct input of disability inclusion experts on its resource panel: Tikiri Kumara Jayawardena (Election Commission) and Manique Gunarathne, a member of the Disability Inclusive Elections Sri Lanka (DIESL) working group.

Participants highlighted the value of the inclusive and multi-stakeholder approach adopted during the training. Reflecting on the workshop’s impact, Sivakumar Sathyaraj, Senior Project Officer at PAFFREL, an election observer group, noted that the workshop enabled stakeholders to identify key challenges faced by persons with disabilities and brainstorm practical, inclusive solutions. He emphasized the importance of sensitizing all actors in the electoral process and affirmed the commitment of observer organizations to support the Election Commission’s inclusion efforts. Abdulla Unais, a young member of the DIESL working group, commended the inclusive composition of the workshop, stating that it moved beyond discussing grievances to empowering persons with disabilities to propose actionable solutions. Sethunathar Selvakumar from the Tamil Deaf Association – Sri Lanka (TDA-SL) stated that:

“Over these two days, we discussed the challenges faced by persons with disabilities, how we can secure our rights through elections, and what solutions are needed to improve inclusive participation. We hope to see these initiatives implemented on a much larger scale in the future.”

Overall, the BRIDGE workshop on Disability Rights and Elections marked a significant step toward embedding disability inclusion within Sri Lanka’s electoral system. By strengthening institutional capacity, building a pool of accredited national facilitators, and fostering meaningful collaboration among election authorities, civil society, and persons with disabilities, this collaborative effort not only empowered participants to propose their own solutions but also reinforced the commitment of civil society and election observers to support the Election Commission in its ongoing mission to leave no voter behind.