Ms. Coomaraswamy, a lawyer by training and formerly the Chairperson of the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission, is an internationally known human rights advocate who has done outstanding work as Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women (1994-2003). In her reports to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, she has written on violence in the family, violence in the community, violence against women during armed conflict and the problem of international trafficking. A strong advocate on women’s rights, she has intervened on behalf of countless women throughout the world seeking clarification from Governments in cases involving violence against women.
Ms. Coomaraswamy was appointed Chairperson of the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission in May 2003. She was also a director of the International Centre for Ethnic Studies in Sri Lanka, leading research projects in the field of ethnicity, women and human rights. She has served as a member of the Global Faculty of the New York University School of Law. She has published widely, including two books on constitutional law and numerous articles on ethnic studies and the status of women.
Ms. Coomaraswamy has won many awards. These include: The International Law Award of the American Bar association, the Human Rights Award of the International Human Rights Law Group, the Bruno Kreisky Award of 2000, the Leo Ettinger Human Rights Prize of the University of Oslo, Cesar Romero Award of the University of Dayton, the William J. Butler Award from the University of Cincinnati, and the Robert S. Litvack Award from McGill University.
Ms. Coomaraswamy is a graduate of the United Nations International School in New York. She received her B.A. from Yale University, her J.D. from Columbia University, an LLM from Harvard University and honorary PhDs from Amherst College, the University of Edinburgh, the University of Essex and the University of Leuven.
Recent posts
- A Year of Unthinkable Suffering: Record Number of Children in Conflict Victims of Grave Violations in 2025, With Government Forces as the Leading Perpetrator for the First Time
- Joint Statement of the AU Special Envoy on Children Affected by Armed Conflict and the UN Under-Secretary-General, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict on the Day of the African Child
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict Concludes First Visit to Haiti
- SRSG CAAC Frazier’s Remarks to the UN Security Council 10143rd meeting on Syria
- USG Vanessa Frazier, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Concludes First Official Visit to the Russian Federation
- USG Vanessa Frazier, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Concludes First Official Visit to Ukraine
- Every Step Could be a Threat: Children and Explosive Remnants of War
- Toward Protecting Children in the Crimes Against Humanity Treaty
- Statement on the Escalating Violence and the Impact on Children in Lebanon and the Middle East
- Statement to the Human Rights Council by Vanessa Frazier, SRSG for Children and Armed Conflict
- South Sudan: Alarming Surge in Grave Violations against Children amid Escalating Conflict
- Joint Statement by SRSG for Children and Armed Conflict and on Violence Against Children on the escalating military operations in Iran and the region