The Faculty of Criminal Justice of General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) was inaugurated on January 19^th, 2022, at the Auditorium of the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

General (Retd) Kamal Gunaratne, Secretary, Ministry of Defence and State Ministry of National Security and Disaster Management, attended the inauguration ceremony as the Chief Guest. The Guests of Honour were Major General (Retd) Jagath Alwis, Secretary to the Ministry of Public Security and the Inspector General of Police, Mr. C.D. Wickramaratne

Founder Dean of the Faculty of Criminal Justice, Deshabandu Professor Jeeva Niriella, stated in welcoming senior officers of the Sri Lanka Police, all distinguished guests, academic, military and non-academic staff members of KDU, students and parents, that “KDU is committed to achieving its responsibility towards the development of tertiary education in Sri Lanka and the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of ‘Quality Education’ by introducing new disciplines of study with blended learning mechanisms that are suitable for the 21^st Century”. She also stated that one of the primary goals of establishing the Faculty of Criminal Justice is to produce “educated graduates with the strong foundation of subject knowledge and the practical skills to provide a high quality service to society, and improve the criminal justice system for the benefits of law and order and the public interest”.

Major General Milinda Peiris, Vice Chancellor of General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, in his speech, described the backdrop of the development of the KDU as a national defence university, and emphasized that “the Faculty of Criminal Justice would complete the spectrum of national security-related higher education that the KDU is involved in”, by commencing degree programmes for the Police and other institutions directly related to criminal justice.

 General (Retd) Kamal Gunaratne, Secretary of Defence and State Minister of National Security and Disaster Management, recalled how the proposal to create academically and professionally qualified Police Officers was initiated by the government of Sri Lanka, and carried forward by the BOM of KDU. He also added, “creating an atmosphere like this for Police Officers, officials involved in Criminal Justice in Sri Lanka to study with military officers and future civil executive officers will create an ideal platform for these professionals to have a great bond among each other and to engage in expected activities with higher mutual understanding of the responsibilities and capabilities of each other”.

Inspector General of Police Mr. C.D. Wickramaratne also addressed the gathering. He first traced the origins of the Sri Lanka Police as an aspect of colonial rule and highlighted the global trends for access to higher education. He also stated that the Sri Lanka Police have come to realize the importance of strengthening their officers through higher education and expressed his gratitude for the practical pathway and opportunity provided by the establishment of a Faculty of Criminal Justice at KDU. Mr. Wickramaratne concluded his speech by mentioning “time will prove that the Sri Lankan society would be the utmost beneficiary of this endeavour”.

The Head of the Department of Criminology, Faculty of Criminal Justice, Dr. Nishara Mendis, proposed the vote of thanks recognizing the dedication of all who contributed towards the establishment of the Faculty of Criminal Justice and participated in its curriculum development, as well as those who made the inauguration ceremony a success.