The National Child Protection Authority Act, No. 50 of 1998 is being reviewed for amendment, Deputy Minister of Women and Child Affairs Namal Sudarshana said on Sunday, alongside parallel changes to the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act, No. 34 of 2005.
The Deputy Minister told NewsFirst the objective was to modernise the legislation to better align with current societal trends and challenges. He confirmed that work on the review had already commenced.
The National Child Protection Authority was originally established under the 1998 Act as the country’s principal coordinating body for child welfare and abuse complaints. The 2005 Prevention of Domestic Violence Act provides the framework for protection orders and family-court remedies for victims of intimate-partner and household violence.
Neither a timeline for tabling amendments nor a specific list of clauses under review was disclosed. The announcement comes amid sustained scrutiny of child-violence reporting volumes, with school-based corporal punishment complaints crossing 11,400 already this year according to NCPA Chairperson Preethi Inoka Ranasinghe.
