The Hon. (Mrs.) Nilusha Lakmali Gamage, Attorney-at-Law

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson of Committees, I am honoured to speak on the Adjournment Motion brought by the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus for International Women’s Day on March 8, proposing a National Care Policy to integrate unpaid care work into the national economy—an initiative we must value.

¶ 02 Women play multiple roles—daughter, wife, sister, mother—while also contributing through various sectors. I especially acknowledge our sisters who pluck tea, those who work overseas and send remittances, and our apparel workers.

¶ 03 Apparel workers are pivotal to our exports; the clothes we wear reflect their sweat, courage, and dedication. Yet do they receive due respect, protection, and justice? Many are young women from villages living in cramped rooms, often sharing spaces with limited drinking water, sanitation, and privacy—while providing their labour.

¶ 04 With global order reductions and production cuts, they face reduced hours, loss of overtime, and job losses—causing severe mental stress, instability about the future, and difficulty supporting families. They nonetheless sustain our economy. Society must change its attitude that labels them merely as “zone girls.” We are providing cultural programs via cultural centres to enrich their lives, and expanding library services to give access to knowledge—helping break monotonous routines.

¶ 05 Women serve across state, political, and administrative sectors, providing leadership—our Hon. Prime Minister, the Hon. Minister of Women and Children’s Affairs, the Hon. State Minister of Mass Media, the Hon. Deputy Chairperson of Committees, and 22 women MPs (20 Government, 2 Opposition). In Sabaragamuwa, the Governor, Chief Secretary, and a DIG, all women, are performing significant services. In Ratnapura District, all MPs have allocated Rs. 500,000 per DS division to empower women. Under Agriculture, Livestock, Lands, and Highways ministries, documentation is underway to grant deeds for long-standing settlement lands to families, resolving a long-pending issue for women. In Ratnapura alone, Rs. 519 million is being spent to build 519 houses, strengthening women’s security and dignity.

¶ 06 For the first time, our women MPs as district women’s subcommittee coordinators are systematically organizing programs for women’s safety and livelihoods—empowering village women and their families.

¶ 07 Finally, I pray women will rise not as vines clinging to a tree, but as trees with strong branches—may they have strength and courage. Thank you for the time.