The Hon. (Mrs.) Saroja Savithri Paulraj - Minister of Women and Child Affairs

¶ 01 Thank you for the opportunity, Mr. Chairman. I wish to respond to what Hon. Uthumalebbe said referring to me.

¶ 02 Before the elections and in recent days after the elections, as Minister of Women and Child Affairs of the National People’s Power Government, false propaganda has been spread claiming I am working on legal or religious law reforms. I am not the Minister of Justice and National Integration; I am the Minister of Women and Child Affairs.

¶ 03 I speak on children’s rights and women’s rights, as I have done throughout my 26-year political career. We have spoken about cases like Rizana Nafeek and Ishalini. If legal changes are necessary, we must discuss them. Parliamentary law reforms cannot be done forcefully or overnight.

¶ 04 Laws cannot change in a day or a night. Let me clarify briefly. I have twice met and discussed with the ACJU’s leadership, including Alqari Noor Ameen Mawlavi. We insist that people should not drive nationalism and religious extremism to the extreme through propaganda. We speak only to safeguard children’s right to education. Every child must receive 13 years of compulsory education up to 18 years of age. Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim—these distinctions are irrelevant; all children under 18 must be recognized as children and ensured 13 years of compulsory education. No one in Parliament should oppose this. When we spoke of this, I was vilified on YouTube, social media and online platforms with personal attacks, in narrow, racist, and religiously charged ways.

¶ 05 No Muslim religious MPs spoke up then, which I regret. I firmly stand for all children’s educational rights and for 13 years of compulsory education. This is not a personal stance; it is our national policy for women and children. Under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, our country recognizes everyone under 18 as a child; we must protect that. I have already discussed this with the ACJU leadership, and I act with transparency, hiding nothing. I kindly request: do not drag this into extremism or racial/religious tendencies. Also, as national leaders, when misinformation spreads on TikTok or Facebook, it is our responsibility to correct misunderstandings among our public. Lead your communities with correct information rather than sweeping statements.

¶ 06 From our side, there will be no religious or racial discrimination. We stand unconditionally for children’s educational rights.