Plans underway for women to head Sri Lanka's military forces: state minister

COLOMBO, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's State Minister of Defense Premitha Bandara Tennakoon said on Monday that the government is planning to enable women to head the army, navy and air force in the South Asian country.

He told the parliament that currently, a woman can only reach the rank of major, especially in the army, in Sri Lanka.

However, the government is planning to change military laws to allow women to get promoted and in time head the three forces, Tennakoon said.

He added that in the Sri Lankan history, women have played prominent roles and Sri Lanka needs to do more to ensure equal status for women.