The Continuing Erosion of Civic Space in the North-East
by Adayaalam Centre for Policy Research, Jaffna, August 19, 2026
Journalism, activism, political mobilization, and memorialization remain at risk in the Northern and Eastern Provinces (North-East), and civic space continues to be under threat. In 2025, the Adayaalam Centre for Policy Research (ACPR) released a report detailing the climate of surveillance in the North-East and intimidation of activists, journalists, and civil society members. Hopes were high that the National People’s Power (NPP) government, elected in late 2024, would chart a course different from that of its predecessors. However, these hopes were disappointed. Incidents documented throughout 2025 and early 2026 by the ACPR indicate that these patterns have persisted.
Covering the period from January 2025 to June 2026, this brief analyses patterns of surveillance and intimidation reported from the North-East and highlights key incidents. The data for this brief are based on ACPR’s human rights documentation, which tracks human rights-related incidents in the North-East, news reports with corroborated accounts, and interviews and observations by ACPR. Incidents reported in the news were verified through ACPR’s sources.
Read the full brief here or Adayaalam The-Illusion-of-Reform-The-Continuing-Erosion-of-Civic-Space-in-the-North-East-2026