Marini De Livera is a Sri Lankan lawyer and social activist who also served as former chairperson of the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) in

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. In 2019, she was awarded the

International Women of Courage Award The International Women of Courage Award, also referred to as the U.S. Secretary of State's International Women of Courage Award, is an American award presented annually by the United States Department of State to women around the world who have ...

by the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...

Career

Marini De Livera holds a Post-Graduate diploma in

human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...

and also holds a degree in Speech & Drama at the

Trinity College, London Trinity College London (TCL) is an examination board based in London, United Kingdom, which offers graded and diploma qualifications (up to postgraduate level) across a range of disciplines in the performing arts and English language learning and ...

. She is also credited for her crucial social services in Sri Lanka especially known for helping women and child victims who are affected due to criminal activities and also had a brief stint as

Human Rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...

trainer for

Sri Lanka Army ta, இலங்கை இராணுவம் , image = File:Sri Lanka Army Logo.png , image_size = 180px , caption = Emblem of the Sri Lanka Army , start_date ...

. In April 2017, she was appointed as the new chairperson of National Child Protection Authority by Sri Lankan President

Maithripala Sirisena Maithripala Yapa Sirisena ( si, පල්ලෙවත්‍ත ගමරාළලාගේ මෛත්‍රීපාල යාපා සිරිසේන; ta, பல்லேவத்த கமராளலாகே மைத்திரி� ...

replacing Natasha Balendran who resigned the job due to personal reasons. She was presented the

on 8 March 2019, (an award which is presented to women for their remarkable achievements which often go unnoticed on the

International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is a global holiday celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women's rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against wom ...

) by US State for her crucial contributions for uplifting the standards of women in Sri Lanka as she was nominated as one of the 10 recipients for the award.

References

{{International Women of Courage Awards Living people Sinhalese lawyers Sri Lankan diplomats 21st-century Sri Lankan lawyers Sri Lankan women academics Sri Lankan women activists Sri Lankan women lawyers Sri Lankan women ambassadors Year of birth missing (living people) Recipients of the International Women of Courage Award