The Sri Lankan legal community will gather this evening to take crucial decisions regarding the challenges they face in their professional practice following the brutal killing of lawyer Buddhika Mallawarachchi and his wife at the Akuregoda Supermarket car park last Friday.
An emergency General Meeting of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) has been convened after 14 years in response to the incident.
President of the BASL, Attorney-at-Law Rajeev Amarasuriya, stated that the emergency meeting will be held at 3.00 p.m. today.
“The Bar Association’s Working Committee met today regarding the Akuregoda shooting incident. This is an incident that affects the entire legal community.
This is not a matter that should be decided solely by our Executive Committee. Therefore, an emergency meeting of all members of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka will be convened at 3 p.m. The next steps of the BASL will be decided at that meeting.
We are calling this meeting after 2012. The last time such a meeting was convened was during the impeachment of former Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranaike. After 14 years, we are once again calling a General Meeting.
No matter how serious the crime, our legal tradition upholds one fundamental principle — the presumption of innocence. In many cases, the accused are acquitted and released. That is how the system functions. Every lawyer, regardless of who the client is, has a professional duty to represent them. When such an incident occurs, it is an attack on the entire system.
The rule of law is now under threat. Today it may be a lawyer. Tomorrow it could be a judge. The day after, it could be a police officer. We have already seen incidents involving prison officers. This is not something we can take lightly.
The legal system safeguards the rule of law in our country. Therefore, we strongly condemn this open and brazen act and the threat it poses to the legal system. As I said earlier, we will convene a General Meeting at 3 p.m. to discuss this matter and take appropriate decisions.
Law enforcement authorities must make full use of CCTV footage and available technology, deploy the necessary police teams, and arrest those responsible. This is not merely a problem affecting a member of the legal community; it is a national issue.
We have seen problems involving judges, police officers, prison officials, doctors, engineers, and business people. Violence cannot become the answer to disputes. The government has a responsibility to protect citizens and ensure public safety.
We are in 2026 not in the 1970s or 1980s. We will support the government where necessary. However, the rule of law and the security of society must be strictly protected,” he said.
