Legal assistance to the vulnerable groups of a country constitutes an important segment of the administration of justice. The Legal Aid Commission of Sri Lanka (LAC) is the foremost among the various other institutions and organisations that cater to this important requirement, mainly due to its sustainability and stability. The LAC was established by Act No 27 of 1978 and at present has 80 centres islandwide.
The vision of the LAC is to create a society where all deserving Sri Lankans irrespective of their economic or social status, gender, caste, creed or nationality or the disabled have equal access to justice. The mission of the LAC as stated in the Legal Aid Act No. 27 of 1978 is to provide Legal Aid to all “Deserving Persons” in the country.
Recent developments in LAC
The Legal Aid Commission opened three new centres in Chilaw, Dehiattakandiya and Siyambalanduwa recently. The LAC has 80 centres Islandwide to provide equal access to justice to all in Sri Lanka.
New LAC Centres
The LAC opened a new centre on December 5, 2015 at the Puttalam Court Complex. Justice Hector S. Yapa, Retired Judge of the Supreme Court and LAC Director General graced the occasion. Since 2011 the public also requested LAC to open a new centre in Puttalam to cover Puttalam, Kalpitiya and Anamaduwa jurisdictions.
On January 30, 2017, the LAC opened its 79th centre in Dehiattakandiya with the participation of Justice Yapa and Magistrate of Dehiattakandiya. The chief of the indigenous Veddha community Vishva Keerthi Wanaspathi Uruwarige Wannila Attho also participated.
There is a village named Henanigala close to Dehiattakandiya where the indigenous people live. They have many legal issues which have not been resolved such as documentation, family, land, environmental issues and possession of forest.
At the opening ceremony Wannila Attho mentioned their legal issues which has not been addressed so far.
Wannila Attho also thanked LAC for supporting and providing legal assistance for the Veddha community. The LAC conducted various legal awareness programmes, forums and clinics in Dambana, Rathgala areas for the well-being of the Veddha community.
In 2015, the LAC also invited representatives of the Veddha community living in Dambana, Rathugala, Vakarai, Henanigala, Dalukana, Pollebedda to Colombo and conducted a forum with the participation of the Government Authority who are working on their issues. Justice Minister Dr. Wijayadasa Rajapakshe graced this occasion.
The 80th LAC centre was opened in Siyambalanduwa Court Complex on January 30, 2017 with the participation of Justice Yapa.
New constructions of LAC
The LAC made reservations and new constructions in Chilaw, Puttlam, Ratnapura, Hambantota, Galle, Monaragala, Kalmunai, Kurunagala, Dehuattakandiya and Colombo Head Office to make legal aid more visible and accessible to the public.
Increasing the income level to Rs. 25,000
So far, the LAC provided legal aid for people with an income less than Rs. 18,000. From 2017, LAC increased it to Rs. 25,000 to extend legal aid services more for deserving people in this country.
Litigation 2016
Total number of LAC cases up to December 31, 2016 – 34,573
(From January 1 to December 31,2016)
Total number of consultations - 92,725
(From January 1 to December 31, 2016)
Total number of LAC beneficiaries - 127,298
(Litigation and consultations)
Awareness programmes
The LAC conducted a series of awareness programmes and clinics for different categories of people in this country with the support of government allocation and donors.
Target groups, public, children, women, senior citizens, the disabled, police, scouts, public officials, prisoners, migrant workers, people living with HIV, LGBTIQ, indigenous people, victims of natural disasters, estate workers, drug addicts and the fishing community.In addition to the awareness programmes, the LAC also conducted capacity building programmes, forums, advocacy programmes as well and participated at stake holder meetings organised by government and private authorities.
Total number of LAC programmes - 414
(From January 1 to December 31, 2016)
Raising legal awareness through media
LAC legal officers participated in media programmes to raise legal awareness.
Number of TV programmes - 169
Radio programmes - 06
Newspapers Daily News Legal Aid Pages - 26
Lankadeepa Neethiye Sarana - 26
LAC further plans to extend legal aid for the most vulnerable groups in the country to provide equal access to justice for all in 2017.
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