The 18th Amendment should not be viewed as a political move to perpetuate the UNF government, but instead as a measure to ensure that the peace process is not stalled midway by an arbitrary dissolution of parliament.

President Chandrika Kumaratunga's position that she would not support any move to strip her of the constitutional power to dissolve parliament is absurd to say the least. After all, her assurance to the people that she will not dissolve parliament - made in an address to the nation recently - as well as her written guarantee to Speaker Joseph Michael Perera on Monday on the same issue is in effect the desired objective of the 18th Amendment.

Her argument that she does not like piecemeal tinkering with the constitution appears strange for it was she who referred to the supreme law of the land as the "Bahubootha Constitution" on many an occasion.

If such is her aversion to the system why not get rid of the obnoxious clauses even one by one than wait till the entire constitution can be done away with.

It must, however, be admitted that the President's aversion to piecemeal tinkering of the Constitution is a position she maintained even during the PA's tenure of office.

But, she must not forget that such a rigid position led to an unfortunate delay in tabling in Parliament the peace package that the PA gloated about during its full term in office. Her folly of tabling the package at the tail end of her administration rendered it into the dustbin of history.

The same mistake is apparently not be repeated by the UNF government which is keen on settling the ethnic conflict in the first flush of victory when the Sinhala electorate is in an accommodative mood.
It cannot be denied that the Ranil Wickremesinghe administration has got about the peace process on the right foot winning the support of the international community first and keeping the Tigers engaged through a ceasefire agreement that has held despite violations.

The announcement of dates to begin direct talks certainly was an achievement the government and Minister Milinda Moragoda in particular should be credited with in the light of the Tigers looking for an excuse to postpone the talks.

The US admission on Thursday made by the visiting Deputy Secretary of State Richard L. Armitage that his government has ended its 20-year policy of a "hands off approach to Sri Lanka" to make a "visible demonstration of the support the US has for the peace process" is again a singular achievement of the UNF government.

"I have come at what is clearly and important moment in Sri Lanka's history. As you know, the United States Government has expressed its strong support for the existing ceasefire agreement and for the recently announced upcoming talks," he said in a statement issued at the conclusion of his visit.

The more important statement, however, was made by him earlier in the day and it assumes added significance, for it was made not in Colombo but in Chavakachcheri.

He said the US government would push forward Sri Lanka's peace process as "forcefully" as it could. Now, this statement was deliberately left out by Tamilnet the online newspaper known for its pro-LTTE stance.

Obviously, the Tigers who have been testing the international community on many an occasion even in the current peace process will heed the powerful message of the US.

This may have also been meant for those detractors of the peace process who believe the US will drop Sri Lanka like a hot potato should the LTTE withdraw from the peace process on flimsy grounds as it has done in the past.

This statement was further strengthened by his comments that the United States has a role to play in the peace process here even though it will not engage in direct talks with the LTTE.

It is reliably learnt that Armitage has pledged not only financial assistance as announced, but considerable military assistance should the LTTE return to war. This should keep the Tigers at bay and require a change in their game plan if they are simply playing for time and leading the government up the garden path.

The U.S. Armed Forces has hitherto maintained a limited military relationship with Sri Lanka. The military relationship is expected to be steadily increased with more frequent visits of military personnel and enhanced training.

This was a major relief to the government that still entertains some doubts about the Tigers' sincerity though it fulfills every provision in the cease-fire agreement amidst criticism that the government was compromising the national security.

It is likely that Premier Wickremesinghe would sign the Access and Cross Servicing Agreement in mid September when he leads a delegation to the US.

Mr. Armitage said on Thursday the two parties were negotiating the agreement which was deferred in July during the premier's earlier visit as it was not finalised.

While Premier Wickremesinghe and Minister Moragoda deserve credit for winning over the US, it must be mentioned that US Ambassador Ashley Wills appeared to have worked tirelessly for a new US-Lanka relationship. Diplomatically, economically and strategically Sri Lanka was not in the US radar for decades.

In fact, US financial commitments to Sri Lanka in recent decades were negligible when compared to the substantial assistance in the early years of post-independent Lanka. U.S. assistance has totalled more than $1.63 billion since Sri Lanka's independence in 1948.

Mr. Armitage's insistence that the answer to the Sri Lankan crisis was "cohabitation" will certainly jolt the chief opposition PA into an uncomfortable position if it decides to resort to "confrontational" politics.

Mr. Armitage who met former Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar again stressed the importance of cohabitation in making the peace process work.

Mr. Kadirgamar will brief President Kumaratunga on the Armitage talks after her return to the country today.

President Kumaratunga is cutting short her UK visit in the wake of new developments vis-à-vis the proposed 18th Amendment. Already an influential PA group led by Mahinda Rajapakse was of the opinion that supporting the move en bloc will keep the party together.

They believe that should a section of PA MPs vote with the government, it would expose the split in the party.

Interestingly, on Friday a visiting delegation of Commonwealth MPs who called on Opposition Leader Mahinda Rajapakse earlier called for a suitable constitution to have a worthwhile peace process while in the same breath they hailed the country's peace efforts saying the process was on the right track.

The delegation had said it was encouraged by the willingness of the government and opposition to take the process forward little knowing the level of acrimony between the President and the Cabinet.

Kumaratunga loyalists Mangala Samaraweera and Anura Bandaranaike are learnt to be against this proposal.

The Cabinet on Wednesday ignored President Kumaratunga's note requesting it to defer the discussion on the 18th Amendment until she returned to the country. The Cabinet discussed the proposed legislation and decided to finalise it at the next meeting.

In the meantime, a document with various proposals will be forwarded to Opposition Leader Mahinda Rajapakse and other party leaders on Monday and their response was expected on Tuesday.

The four main points in the document to be presented to the party leaders are:

1. To take away the powers of the President to dissolve Parliament after the completion of one year.

2. The Speaker to appoint a special national committee in consultation with the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader. The committee comprising all party leaders will discuss important national issues.

3. Any parliamentarian could use his or her vote in accordance with his or her conscience on all national interest bills presented to Parliament after being discussed by the national committee.

4. Any member who votes for this amendment cannot be expelled from Parliament.

The amendment, which was discussed by the Cabinet is to ensure that ministerships and deputy ministerships will be filled on the recommendation of an all-party parliamentary Committee on National Priorities (CNP). Members of the CNP will have the right to vote according to their conscience.

To enable MPs from all parties to vote for the constitutional amendment bill, the bill will have an indemnity clause to allow conscience voting.

Even as President Kumaratunga arrives today her tolerant cohabitation partner Premier Wickremesinghe has taken wing to India for official business and to grace the occasion of the wedding of the daughter of former Indian High Commissioner Gopalakrishna Gandhi.

Meanwhile, the new Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Nirupan Sen will present his credentials to President Kumratunga on Tuesday. While Prime Minister Wickremesinghe will return from India on time for the next Cabinet meeting, which we hope will not be one that will be marked by fireworks. This, however, will depend greatly on President Kumaratunga's position and the Opposition Leader's stand on the 18th Amendment to the Constitution.

It is bound to be another eventful week ahead that will make or mar the chief opposition PA and in a way enhance or stall the peace process which the has begun to gain momentum .

Back to Top

Back to Columns

Copyright © 2001 Wijeya Newspapers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Webmaster