Saturday Dec 14, 2024
Saturday Dec 14, 2024
Tuesday, 14 May 2019 00:09 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Leader of the House and Public Enterprise Minister Lakshman Kiriella yesterday called on the Opposition to support the proposed Counter-Terrorism Act (CTA) as it has already passed Supreme Court (SC) scrutiny.
|
Public Enterprise and Kandyan City Development Minister Lakshman Kiriella – Pic Lasantha Kumara |
Kiriella speaking to media at the United National Party (UNP) headquarters said the Opposition’s proposal to appoint a Parliamentary Select Committee to analyse the CTA would take three to four months but bipartisanship could get the legislation approved as early as next week. Opposition Leader Mahinda Rajapaksa last week called for a Select Committee but has so far insisted they will not support the CTA.
“Our intentions are pure. This is not a law to keep the UNP in power or to suppress the Opposition. If the Opposition is against the Bill then they must show what clauses they are against. We can discuss each and every clause and see how to change it. That’s why we are asking them to establish a dialog with us,” Kiriella said.
Responding to Rajapaksa’s statements that the existing Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) was better than the proposed CTA, Kiriella pointed out that Sri Lanka has to follow in the footsteps of other countries that had introduced new laws to fight global terror. “The Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) is over 40 years old. It was based on the legislation presented to the British Parliament to fight terrorism in Northern Ireland. This law has since been changed about 10 times but they brought a new law after the London bomb attack. In the US after the 9/11 attacks new legislation was brought to deal with global terrorism, now we are facing the same threat.” He rejected Opposition arguments that the CTA was too lenient on terrorists and said that it closed gaps in the PTA, making it far more effective for the security challenges faced by Sri Lanka.
“The Counter-Terrorism Act has several important provisions that the PTA does not have, for one thing under the CTA the death penalty can be given to terrorists. Secondly powers will be given to the military to search and handover to Police. Thirdly, under the CTA anyone residing in Sri Lanka with terror links can have legal action taken against them.”
Kiriella said the SC had already approved the Bill and if any questionable clauses existed in the CTA they would have been flagged by the SC.
“We ask everyone to support this Bill. We have had a dialog with the Supreme Court. It was they who said imprisonment of 20 years for terrorism is too lenient and called for the death penalty. This is legislation that is important for the country so we call on the Opposition to support us. Let’s sit around a table and discuss this and get it passed as soon as possible. If this was going to repress the media or anyone else the Supreme Court would have said so but they have approved the Bill.”
