ATCHARA MUTHU

Experienced community worker adept at integrating human rights values into advocacy efforts. Utilizes the Right to Information (RTI) law to empower marginalized communities, uphold their fundamental rights, and promote transparency and accountability in governance. Through my work, I aim to commit to advancing human rights values through grassroots engagement and fostering a culture of participation and accountability.

• Interreligious Peace Sports Festival (IPSF), Youth Ambassador for Peace at Sun Moon University, South Korea. July 2005 - August 2005
• Promoting Peace, Reconciliation and Engaging Citizens to Enhance Public Service Delivery and State Accountability. May 2017 - August 2018
• Promoting Social Accountability Engaging in the Present to Deal with the Past. June 2018 - March 2021
• Consultancy Services on Right to Information (RTI) Research in Sri Lanka Embassy of Switzerland. May 2021 - March 2022
• Fostering Community of Practitioners for Social Accountability Beyond Towns in Sri Lanka - UNESCO. November 2021 - October 2022
• Creating a Community of Practitioners to Revitalize Participatory Democracy through Social Justice Cooperatives. April 2021 - March 2024

• Progression from Project Officer to Project Coordinator (2017-2024) at The Social Architects (TSA) Led and supported diverse initiatives to promote transparency, human rights, and sustainable development in Sri Lanka.
• Co-organized a Regional Right to Information (RTI) Conference in Dhaka, Bangladesh. - October 2017
• Coordinated RTI and Community Mobilization Training Tour to South India.
  March – April 2018
• Edited and Co-Directed the Documentary Film “Right to In-formation in Sri Lanka – The Dawn of a Fishbowl Regime?” documentation on people’s voices a year after the implementation of RTI Law in Sri Lanka. - April 2018 > https://youtu.be/7fRYFNrwVQM?si=KicTSs10Rh-DEspr
  
• Headed the Podcast Project on Women’s participation in local governance and impact of Right to Information (RTI) Law to increase women’s participation in Sri Lanka - Conducted extensive fieldwork and research across remote villages in five districts in Sri Lanka to assess the impact of RTI law in empowering women to claim public space and increase their involvement in public life. - November 2018
• Coordinated a workshop on Art and film for young people with around 65 participants from Northern, Eastern, North Central, Southern, and Central Provinces in Sri Lanka, with experts from India. - February 2020
• Played a role in and Co-Developed a Street Theatre Drama as an awareness program using community success stories of RTI Law with the collaboration of youth members from Eastern Province. - March 2020
• Co-edited and worked on a Documentary film joined hands with UNESCO Challenging Corruption in Sri Lanka the Right to Information Way. - August 2020 > https://youtu.be/PkMgFcTRJtk?si=d93MnuDXCs_
• UNESCO - Fostering Community of Practitioners for Social Accountability Beyond Town in Sri Lanka. - SDG 16 Community of Practice: Created a report and film capturing grassroots use of RTI for transparency and SDG 16 monitoring across Sri Lanka. - November 2021 to October 2022

            > https://youtu.be/I-E2JRNM10U?si=7Gry_111Qf8 

            > https://youtu.be/ImVlBUWN5dY?si=-zB4EArWs6g

            > https://youtu.be/3Ck0k1hzJTQ?si=7AGgXR5uVM i=LeZIhUEKLlhhF6 

            > https://youtu.be/3Ck0k1hzJTQ?si=7AGgXR5uVM 

            > https://youtu.be/Ljw9ZLXwESI?si=qc85FmOobp3

• Roles included in filmmaking project organizing shooting schedules, art direction, content creation, case study review, and film editing. - March 2020

• Tamil - 5/5
• English - 4/5
• Sinhala - 3/5

[1] Ms Sherine Xavier

LL.M Columbia University, New York.

Human Rights Activist/Film Maker/Legal Scholar.

Director of The Social Architects.

Email: sherinetsa@gmail.com

Mobile: +94 77 393 8818

[2] Mr M.A.M. Hakeem

LL.B.(Hons.) Col., LL.M. (Malaya), Diploma in Law of the Sea (KMI).

Attorney at Law - Supreme Court of Sri Lanka.

Senior Lecturer - Department of Public & International Law.

Faculty of Law - University of Colombo.

Deputy Director - Centre for the Study of Human Rights, University of Colombo.

Academic Coordinator, EDHR - Faculty of Graduate Studies, University of Colombo.

Email: mamhakeem@yahoo.co.uk

Mobile: +94 77 768 0035

Office: +94 11 215 8711

[3] Dr N.Karthikeyan

Senior Lecturer.

The Open University of Sri Lanka,

Email: nkart@ou.ac.lk,

Mobile: +94 778854154