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Friday, 7 July 2017 00:10 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Himal Kotelawala
Arguing for the chief Buddhist prelates’ right to express their views on matters of national significance, the SLFP yesterday said that President and party leader Maithripala Sirisena is flexible enough to consider their views with regard to the proposed new Constitution as well as the controversial Enforced Disappearances Bill.
The chief incumbents of the three chapters had earlier this week unanimously decided that there was no need for a new Constitution in Sri Lanka. They had also expressed their opposition to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance Bill which was to be taken up in Parliament on Wednesday (5 July).
Speaking to journalists at the weekly SLFP press briefing, Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe said that the President is open to meeting the Mahanayaka Theras of the three chapters for a possible dialogue. He is flexible enough to consult all parties, as he was with the ongoing SAITM and Uma Oya controversies, reiterated Samarasinghe. According to the Minister, President Sirisena intends to listen to the prelates’ advice and keep their opinions in mind when moving forward with the Government’s reform agenda.
“There’s a constitutional reform process underway in Parliament. The Steering Committee’s interim report has been submitted. The six subcommittees’ interim reports have also been presented. The different stakeholders in society have now started to express their views. The Mahanayaka Theras are one such party. It’s fair to listen to them. We should do that. Other parties too must be met,” he said.
The SLFP as well as the UNP and other political parties, said Samarasinghe, had yet to put forward their official positions with regard to the Constitution.
“This is just an interim report. The media must report this properly. Some media, it’s sad to say, behaves as if there is no Government in this country. It’s an abuse of the freedom given to the media. The media has a responsibility too,” he said.
Speaking to Daily FT on the sidelines of the press conference, the Minister reaffirmed his party’s position to oppose any reform that would require a national referendum.
“We don’t think a referendum is necessary. We still haven’t put forward the party position. Nor has the UNP. We’re in the process of consulting civil society - various sections of civil society - after which we will come to a consolidated position which we shall put forward,” he said.
Asked whether the SLFP was still committed to its position of an amended Constitution as opposed to a brand new Constitution, Samarasinghe said: “We didn’t say [we were for a new Constitution]. We’re part of the Constitution reform process. Whether it’s a new Constitution or an amendment or a series of amendments to the Constitution is what has to be decided.”
It was President Maithripala Sirisena who had intervened and prevented the Enforced Disappearances Bill being taken up in Parliament, thereby indefinitely delaying the debate that was scheduled for 5 July, Ports Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe said.
The President did this before any quarters had raised their voices in opposition to the proposed Bill, he said, referring to comments made by the chief incumbents of the three chapters earlier this week. The prelates’ opposition was on the grounds that the Bill may pave the way for international prosecution of Sri Lankan troops for war crimes allegedly committed during the final phase of the war.
“Before anyone else spoke about this, the President said that the Bill ought not to be presented until a further study was carried out. It was after this that the venerable monks and other sections of society expressed their views,” said Samarasinghe.
Some 93 countries have signed the convention, however, only 55 countries have ratified it, said the Minister. India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives have signed and Sri Lanka was supposed to ratify it in May last year.
“A lot of powerful countries have yet to even sign it. In such a context, the President said that further study was required for a final decision to be made,” he said, adding that before such conventions are agreed on there needs to be national discourse on the subject.
Asked if it was a blunder on the part of the Government to present the Bill to Parliament before adequate study, the Minister told journalists: “It wasn’t a blunder. It was more a question of considering all the viewpoints expressed by society and leaving room to factor in those viewpoints in the national interest.”
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe himself had said that he was not going to take up the matter in Parliament, which according to Samarasinghe was an indication of the flexibility of the Yahapalana Government.
“Governments can’t always be right. If we say the Government is always right, that’s contrary to democracy. We should listen to civil society,” he said, adding that the Government’s first priority was the national interest, giving priority to what’s best for the country over any international repercussions.
