MP Weerasekara clarifies: I did not attack the Judiciary

Saturday, 15 July 2023 00:03 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Says BASL has issued the statement merely in support of Mullaitivu lawyers without analysing facts
Asks BASL to tour the North and witness the destruction caused to Buddhist heritage sites
Questions why BASL did not object to a statement by MP Sumanthiran criticising the judiciary

Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) parliamentarian Rear Admiral Sarath Weerasekara has denied the allegations levelled against him by the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) claiming the MP had attacked the judiciary in a recent speech in parliament.

In a letter to the President of the BASL yesterday, Weerasekara said he is well aware of how he must conduct himself in parliament as an MP. He criticised the BASL statement, claiming that it was issued in support of legal counsels from Mullaitivu without properly analysing the factual details of the situation.

He called on the officials of the BASL to tour the North and witness the destruction caused to Buddhist heritage sites. The MP also urged legal counsels to carefully consider their decision before representing separatist individuals involved in criminal activities.

“We all respect the judiciary,” the MP affirmed in his communique.

Weerasekara questioned the BASL on their failure to object to a statement made by Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MP M.A Sumanthiran regarding the Supreme Court in Parliament.

“He made a remark about the country’s Supreme Court, comparing it to a swinging clockwork, and suggested that if they lacked the intellectual capacity to read and comprehend, they should promptly go home. Why did the Bar Association not express its objection in this regard? Is it not a serious threat to the judiciary? Is the Bar Association afraid of Sumanthiran?” the MP asked.

Furthermore, Weerasekara highlighted that he personally took the initiative in 2014 to address the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, condemning the derogatory and objectionable reports published about Sri Lankan courts by former Special Rapporteur Monica Pinto.

He said at the time the BASL once again did not speak out against the report by Pinto which highly criticised the Sri Lankan judiciary.

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