Balendran Jeyakumari
Balendran Jeyakumari has led a campaign calling for the whereabouts of missing persons in Sri Lanka to be made known. She became involved in the campaign following the enforced disappearance of her son after he surrendered to the Sri Lankan army in 2009. Balendran Jeyakumari and her daughter have featured in various video documentaries on the disappeared. She has mobilised families in Killinochchi to attend hearings, protests and meetings on the issue of disappearances.
The situation of Human Rights Defenders has significantly improved recently. With the changes in the political spectrum, first through Presidential election in January and then the parliamentary election in August 2015 has greatly changed the landscape for HRDs in Sri Lanka. The previous years saw large scale repression of dissent and HRDs are hoping for a sustainable change with cautious mind.
