The Sri Lankan Cabinet has approved measures to draft laws that would allow the country’s expatriates to vote in elections from overseas, Cabinet Spokesman and Media Minister Nalinda Jayatissa announced.
Currently, election laws permit only citizens residing within Sri Lanka and registered in the electoral roll to cast their votes. “According to the current elections law, there is no provision for citizens offshore to vote, nor has any law been formulated in this regard,” Minister Jayatissa said at the weekly post-Cabinet media briefing.
He noted that several Asian countries, including India, Bangladesh, and the Philippines, have already introduced legal mechanisms to enable offshore voting. “It has been recognized as a timely requirement to amend such laws for Sri Lanka as well,” he added.
Accordingly, the Cabinet has approved the proposal by the Minister of Public Administration, Provincial Councils, and Local Governments to appoint a committee comprising officials from the Elections Commission, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Employment and Tourism, and other relevant institutions. The committee will study necessary amendments and formulate new laws to safeguard the voting rights of Sri Lankans living abroad.
