19th Amendment: Where To From Here?

Karu

16219A: MOMENT IN HISTORY

The Buddha told his foremost Disciple, the Venerable Ananda, that “… as long as the Vajjis call frequent public assemblies of the tribe; as long as they meet in concord, conclude their meetings in concord and carry out their policies in concord, so long they may be expected not to decline but to flourish…”. That was with reference to the early republicanism of the Vajji confederacy.

The Tathagatha will surely approve of the legislative concord exhibited in our Parliament last week when the 19th Amendment to our own Constitution of the Second Republic was made law. Whether he would, however, approve of the behaviour of some members of this ‘assembly’ is a moot question………………  READ MORE

19th Amendment: Where To From Here?

With the passing of the 19th Amendment, the nation witnessed a turning point for Sri Lankan politics. The journey, started by pioneering thinker N. M. Perera in 1978 as envisioned in his speeches, has now reached its pinnacle with the passing of this bill. There are many stakeholders both great and small that should be shown gratitude and respect for making this herculean task a success.

The passing of this Amendment must be seen as a success for all those involved, instead of focusing on singular parties that may or may not have been more instrumental than others at this juncture………………..  READ MORE

President’s diplomacy brings about win-win solution to 19A

Inside story of the high drama and tense moments in Parliament when Sirisena negotiated with rival parties to work out consensus – Premier Wickremesinghe compromises on key clauses; major changes after new Parliament is elected – Attention now on 20A for electoral reforms; President presents draft, but small and minority parties want major changes…………………  READ MORE