COI Report March 2012 - UK Border Agency - Home Office

7 MARCH 2012 SRI LANKA
―The body of law relating to marriage consists of the general law, customary law and
personal law. Tamils are governed by the general law in most marriage-related matters,
whereas Kandyan Sinhalese can choose to be governed by the general law or their
customary laws. Muslims are governed by Muslim personal law… The Marriage
Registration Ordinance and the Civil Procedure Code constitute the general law on
divorce. The provisions of the ordinance firmly establish divorce as faultbased [sic] and
case law has reaffirmed this concept. Grounds for divorce under the ordinance are the
following:
� ―adultery;
� malicious desertion; and
� incurable impotence at the time of marriage.
―Cruelty is not a ground for divorce, although it may be a factor in determining malicious
desertion. Physical illtreatment [sic] per se is also not a ground for divorce under the
general law, but it is a cause for legal separation… The Civil Procedure Code
constitutes the general law on judicial separation. The code provides that either party
may petition for separation ‗on any ground on which by the law applicable to Sri Lanka
such separation may be granted.‘…The 1999 Maintenance Act is the general law on
maintenance during marriage… The act requires any spouse with sufficient means to
maintain the other spouse, if such individual is unable to maintain him or herself…The
principles of custody are thus governed by the residuary Roman-Dutch law. The
predominant feature of the common law is the preferential custodial right given to the
father, which may be denied only in instances of danger to the ‗life, health and morals‘
of the children. A mother who seeks custody therefore has the onus of displacing the
father‘s right. On most of these matters there are also more specific laws governing in
particular, Muslims, Tamils and Kandyan Sinhalese.‖
20.10 The same source 341 noted that:
―Roman-Dutch law forms the bedrock of the general law on property in Sri Lanka. The
1923 Married Women‘s Property Ordinance constitutes the general law on matrimonial
property rights. Under the ordinance, a married woman is capable of holding, acquiring
and disposing of any movable or immovable property or of contracting as if she were a
femme sole, without the consent or intervention of her husband. This applies to all
property belonging to her at the time of marriage and property acquired or devolved to
her after marriage. She also has the same remedies and redress by way of criminal
proceedings for the protection and security of her separate property. The 1876
Matrimonial Rights and Inheritance Ordinance constitutes the general law on
inheritance rights. The ordinance provides for equal rights to inheritance for male and
female spouses: upon the death of either spouse, the surviving spouse inherits half of
the deceased spouse‘s property. The extent of the general law‘s application has been
limited by legislation, judicial decisions and the system of customary laws that are
operative in the island. The matrimonial property and inheritance rights of Kandyan
Sinhalese and Tamils are governed by their own systems. Muslims are governed by
Muslim personal law.‖
341 Centre for Reproductive Rights, Women of the World: South Asia, Sri Lanka chapter, undated
http://reproductiverights.org/sites/crr.civicactions.net/files/documents/pdf_wowsa_srilanka.pdf date
accessed 1 June 2011, p225
The main text of this COI Report contains the most up to date publicly available information as at 3 February 2012.
Further brief information on recent events and reports has been provided in the Latest News section
to 2 March 2012.
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