Mental health legislation in Sri Lanka: the time for change is now

Despite a history of being subjected to mental health legislation for over a hundred years, Sri Lanka relies on these archaic laws to implement its present day services when most other countries in the region which have enacted recent reforms. This has resulted in discrepancies in service delivery and a less than optimum level of care. With the expansion of the country’s mental health services and other social changes, the need for immediate reforms, drafted a decade ago but not yet legislated, is convincing.