Minister of Foreign Affairs Mangala Samaraweera today met with Rita Izsák-Ndiaye, UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

This is very first visit to the island by a Special Rapporteur on the subject of Minority Issues. She will stay in the country till October 20.

during her 10-day visit, the human rights expert will visit Colombo as well as other locations in the Northern, North Central, Eastern and Central Provinces to meet with minority communities to hear directly from them about their issues and concerns. 

The special rapporteur will also meet with a wide range of other stakeholders, including state authorities, the National Human Rights Commission and civil society actors.

She is expected to present her full report on her visit to the UN Human Rights Council in March 2017.