Expertise in: Legal & Policy Reforms

Bhavani Fonseka is a Senior Researcher and Attorney at Law with the Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA), with a focus on research and national and international advocacy. Her work has revolved around assisting victims and affected populations across Sri Lanka, legal and policy reforms, and public interest litigation (PIL).  

She is the editor of the books Elusive Justice & Emblematic Cases in Sri Lanka (2023) & Transitional Justice in Sri Lanka: Moving Beyond Promises (2017) & co-editor of the book Salient Aspects of Public Interest Litigation Jurisprudence in Sri Lanka (2023). She is presently a member of the policy committee of Human Rights Watch, a board member of Women Leaders in International Justice and Accountability, and on the editorial boards of the International Journal on Transitional Justice and the Women, Peace & Security Series- De Gruyter Press.  

She was an adviser to the Consultation Taskforce appointed by the Government of Sri Lanka in 2016 and a member of the drafting committee to formulate the National Human Rights Action Plan for Sri Lanka from 2017-2021. She holds an LLB (Hons.) (Bristol), LLM (Denver), and MPA (Harvard). She was a Mason Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, Eisenhower Fellow, Asia21 Fellow, and TEDx speaker.