Buddhism to remain paramount in new charter : Prime Minister

Sri Lanka's prime minister said on Wednesday that Buddhism will remain paramount in the island, seeking to head off protests led by the powerful Buddhist clergy against proposed changes to the constitution.

According to REUTERS the government announced plans last January to devolve power to provinces including in areas dominated by the country's ethnic Tamil minority in an effort to address alienation and bury the kind of ethnic tension that led to a 26-year civil war.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the Buddhist character of the country would not be touched.

"We are in the process of preparing the new constitution ... the president and myself have agreed to maintain the priority given to the Buddhism in the constitution as it is," Wickremesinghe told a group of Buddhist monks in Colombo on Wednesday.

More than 75 prominent monks last week warned the government not to change the constitution or it would face consequences.

The opposition, led by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, and Buddhist groups have warned the government of nationwide demonstrations if the government go ahead with changes to the charter.

Some opposition members have alleged that the new constitution had been drafted to please Western nations and to dilute the influence of Buddhism.