Center for Investigative Reporting Sri Lanka

21/08/2026

Participants speak...

19/08/2026

Sri Lanka’s first ever training on extreme heat is all set to be held on Friday, August 21, 2026

To support Sri Lankan journalists to better understand extreme heat, the Center for Investigative Journalism (CIR) in partnership with the UNFPA will host a specialized training workshop “Reporting on Extreme Heat” in Colombo.

As SriLanka faces shifting climate patterns and the threat of super El Niño, this training will equip local journalists with climate data & insights on how extreme heat impacts, especially vulnerable groups.

The training will be delivered by,

Arun Karki is the founder of the Center for Data Journalism Nepal (CDJN) and South Asia Coordinator at the Centre for Investigative Journalism, London. He is a leading expert in data journalism and open-source investigations with a strong focus on satellite imagery, geospatial analysis, verification techniques, and digital mapping.

Dilrukshi Handunnetti is an international award-winning investigative journalist and journalism trainer with a strong focus on climate science, environmental governance, and public-interest journalism. She is the Co-Founder of the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR) and Sri Lanka Editor for Mongabay.

Founder and Chief Editor of the Nepal Investigative Multimedia Journalism Network (NIMJN), Rajneesh Bhandari has extensive experience reporting on disasters and humanitarian crises. His sessions will explore disaster risk reduction, ethical crisis reporting, solutions and accountability journalism.

17/08/2026

The three-day Environmental Crises Reporting Training, organized by the KAS Media Programme Asia in partnership with Center for Investigative Reporting Sri Lanka begins today (17).

26 participants from 12 counties in Asia will go through the full disaster cycle — from preparedness and early warning to crisis response, recovery and accountability.

Through expert sessions, practical exercises and hands-on reporting, participants will explore tools including AI, data and satellite imagery, alongside ethical and solutions-focused approaches to environmental reporting.

13/08/2026

Sri Lanka’s campaign finance law was meant to make elections more transparent and level the playing field. But the first major test of the law has exposed serious gaps.

Campaign spending can begin before the statutory campaign period. The original source of donations can be difficult to trace. Digital advertising, influencers and third-party campaigns remain largely outside clear regulation. And financial disclosures often reach voters only after they have cast their ballots.

The law also limits campaign spending without placing clear limits on donations, potentially giving wealthy contributors disproportionate influence.

Read the story: https://cir.lk/effective-campaign-finance-control-calls-for-regulation-of-third-party-campaigning-cap-on-donations/

06/08/2026

Meet Our Trainers

Together with KAS Media Programme Asia, we happy to introduce our expert panel of trainers who will be delivering an intensive three day residential workshop, “Reporting on Environmental Crises,” for 28 Asian environmental journalists from 17 -19 August 2026 in Kalutara, Sri Lanka.

Arun Karki is the founder of the Center for Data Journalism Nepal (CDJN) and South Asia Coordinator at the Centre for Investigative Journalism, London. He is a leading expert in data journalism and open-source investigations with a strong focus on satellite imagery, geospatial analysis, verification techniques, and digital mapping.

The Executive Director of Climate Tracker Asia, Biena Magbitang has worked extensively to strengthen climate journalism across Asia. She brings expertise in climate communication, ethical reporting, collaborative journalism, and solutions-oriented storytelling.

Dilrukshi Handunnetti is an international award-winning investigative journalist and journalism trainer with a strong focus on climate science, environmental governance, and public-interest journalism. She is the Co-Founder of the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR) and Sri Lanka Editor for Mongabay.

Founder and Chief Editor of the NIMJN - Nepal Investigative Multimedia Journalism Network, Rajneesh Bhandari has extensive experience reporting on disasters and humanitarian crises. His sessions will explore disaster risk reduction, ethical crisis reporting, solutions and accountability journalism.

Founder of Thibi, Yan Naung Oak specializes in data, artificial intelligence, digital research, and investigative technologies. He focuses on practical AI tools and innovative digital workflows that support faster, more accurate crisis reporting.

We look forward to welcoming our participants from across South Asia and Southeast Asia.

06/08/2026

Sri Lanka has blocked access to 24 unlicensed offshore gambling and betting websites in its first major enforcement action under the Gambling Regulatory Authority Act.

But experts warn website blocking alone is unlikely to dismantle the wider betting ecosystem, where Facebook, WhatsApp, affiliate networks and local payment agents continue to drive users to offshore operators.

Read the story: https://cir.lk/sri-lanka-launches-first-major-crackdown-on-offshore-betting-expert-call-for-broader-enforcement/

Speed Read COLOMB—Sri Lanka, on August 5, blocked access to 24 online gambling and betting websites operating without valid licenses, marking the country’s first major enforcement action against offshore betting operators since the Gambling Regulatory Authority Act took effect in December 2025. ...

05/08/2026

How do offshore betting networks continue to thrive on Facebook despite Sri Lanka's new gambling law?

A new investigation examines more than 10,813 public Facebook records and reveals a sophisticated ecosystem connecting betting pages, influencers, WhatsApp groups, affiliate marketers and offshore gambling platforms.

Among the findings:
* 4 betting-branded Facebook accounts with around 29,400 followers.
* 16 Facebook groups with approximately 116,700 members.
* More than 1,000 WhatsApp group invitations and direct-chat links used to move users into private betting communities.
* 2,755 duplicate posts and 5,227 template-based posts pointing to a coordinated promotional network.

Digital rights researcher Dr Sanjana Hattotuwa explains how these networks operate in plain sight and why legislation alone has not translated into effective enforcement.

Read the interview:

Speed Read: COLOMBO — An unprecedented investigation into Facebook’s gambling ecosystem has found that offshore betting operators continue to openly target Sri Lankan users months after the Gambling Regulatory Authority Act took effect, using lifestyle content, cricket promotions, WhatsApp netwo...

05/08/2026

Center for Investigative Reporting joins Global SafeBox

The Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR) Sri Lanka has joined the SafeBox Network, a global initiative led by Forbidden Stories, strengthening international efforts to protect investigative journalists to prevent critical public-interest reporting from being silenced.

Forbidden Stories is a Paris-based nonprofit organization that continues and publishes the work of journalists who are threatened, imprisoned, or killed because of their reporting. By coordinating cross-border investigations with leading media organizations worldwide, it ensures that attempts to silence journalists only amplify the stories they sought to suppress.

CIR's collaboration with the SafeBox Network is an attempt to expand the network's reach to investigative journalists in Sri Lanka and across South Asia.

The SafeBox Network provides journalists working on high-risk investigations with a secure platform to store reporting materials, documents, and evidence. If a journalist is attacked, detained, or otherwise prevented from publishing, Forbidden Stories and its international network of media partners are able to access the materials and continue the investigation, ensuring that the public-interest story reaches audiences despite attempts to suppress it.
By joining the network, CIR reinforces its commitment to investigative journalism, press freedom, and the safety of journalists. The partnership also creates new opportunities for collaboration with international investigative reporters and organizations working to defend independent journalism around the world.

As attacks on journalists continue to threaten press freedom globally, the SafeBox Network serves as a powerful safeguard, sending a clear message that silencing a journalist cannot silence the story.

30/07/2026

More than one million cases. One constitutional debate.
Sri Lanka's courts are struggling under the weight of 1.13 million pending cases, yet the government's proposed solution has shifted the spotlight from court reforms to judicial independence.

Should experienced judges remain in office longer to help clear the backlog? Or should the priority be filling vacancies, recruiting more judges and modernizing the justice system?

Read the full story:
https://cir.lk/sri-lanka-judicial-crisis-deepens-over-plan-to-extend-judges-retirement-age/

Speed Read: COLOMBO—Sri Lanka’s courts are buckling under the weight of more than one million unresolved cases. Courtrooms remain overcrowded, judicial vacancies persist, and litigants often wait years for justice. Meanwhile, the government’s latest effort to improve the justice system has tri...