Current Version
| Region | Sri Lanka |
| Issue | LGBT discrimination |
| Status | Illegal in some contexts |
| Start Date | 2022 |
| End Date | (none) |
| Description | There are some protections based on sexual orientation. The Women Empowerment Act, No. 37 of 2024, states that one of the objects of the Act shall be to protect women from all forms of discrimination based on gender and sexual orientation. The Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022, states: "'special categories of personal data' means, the personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, the processing of genetic data, biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning health or data concerning a natural person’s sex life or sexual orientation, personal data relating to offences, criminal proceedings and convictions, or personal data relating to a child." |
| Sources | https://www.parliament.lk/uploads/acts/gbills/english/6348.pdf https://www.parliament.lk/uploads/acts/gbills/english/6242.pdf |
Revision History (4)
| Old Value | New Value (Current) | |
|---|---|---|
| Description | There is limited protection based on sexual orientation. The Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022, states: "'special categories of personal data' means, the personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, the processing of genetic data, biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning health or data concerning a natural person’s sex life or sexual orientation, personal data relating to offences, criminal proceedings and convictions, or personal data relating to a child." | There are some protections based on sexual orientation. The Women Empowerment Act, No. 37 of 2024, states that one of the objects of the Act shall be to protect women from all forms of discrimination based on gender and sexual orientation. The Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022, states: "'special categories of personal data' means, the personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, the processing of genetic data, biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning health or data concerning a natural person’s sex life or sexual orientation, personal data relating to offences, criminal proceedings and convictions, or personal data relating to a child." |
Show Difference | ||
| Sources | https://www.parliament.lk/uploads/acts/gbills/english/6242.pdf | https://www.parliament.lk/uploads/acts/gbills/english/6348.pdf https://www.parliament.lk/uploads/acts/gbills/english/6242.pdf |
Show Difference | ||
| Old Value | New Value | |
|---|---|---|
| Description | There is limited protection based on sexual orientation. The Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022, states: “special categories of personal data” means, the personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, the processing of genetic data, biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning health or data concerning a natural person’s sex life or sexual orientation, personal data relating to offences, criminal proceedings and convictions, or personal data relating to a child. | There is limited protection based on sexual orientation. The Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022, states: "'special categories of personal data' means, the personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, the processing of genetic data, biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning health or data concerning a natural person’s sex life or sexual orientation, personal data relating to offences, criminal proceedings and convictions, or personal data relating to a child." |
Show Difference | ||
| Old Value (Original) | New Value | |
|---|---|---|
| Value | No protections | Illegal in some contexts |
| Start Date | Oct 8, 2014 | 2022 |
| Description | The government of Sri Lanka claimed to the United Nations Human Rights Committee on 7–8 October 2014 that they think sexual minorities should be protected under existing generic anti-discrimination laws provided in the Constitution.[22] The government of Sri Lanka stated that such protections were "'implicit'" in the Sri Lankan constitution and that the government has not written a law giving 'explicit' rights yet". | There is limited protection based on sexual orientation. The Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022, states: “special categories of personal data” means, the personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, the processing of genetic data, biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning health or data concerning a natural person’s sex life or sexual orientation, personal data relating to offences, criminal proceedings and convictions, or personal data relating to a child. |
Show Difference | ||
| Sources | https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Sri_Lanka | https://www.parliament.lk/uploads/acts/gbills/english/6242.pdf |
Show Difference | ||
| Original entry | |
|---|---|
| Status | No protections |
| Start Date | Oct 8, 2014 |
| End Date | (none) |
| Description | The government of Sri Lanka claimed to the United Nations Human Rights Committee on 7–8 October 2014 that they think sexual minorities should be protected under existing generic anti-discrimination laws provided in the Constitution.[22] The government of Sri Lanka stated that such protections were "'implicit'" in the Sri Lankan constitution and that the government has not written a law giving 'explicit' rights yet". |
| Sources | https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Sri_Lanka |