Reforming Sri Lankan Presidentialism

Reforming Sri Lankan Presidentialism

Reforming Sri Lankan Presidentialism – Provenance, Problems and Prospects is a collection of scholarly essays edited by Asanga Welikala.

Download the complete Volume 1 here, and Volume 2 here. Individual chapters and contributions can be downloaded as PDFs below.

List of Contributors
Preface – Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu
Editor’s Introduction – Asanga Welikala
Cover Illustration – Chandraguptha Thenuwara

Volume 1

Part I – The Sri Lankan Presidency: Institutional Characteristics

  1. Bonapartism and the Anglo-American Constitutional Tradition in Sri Lanka: Reassessing the 1978 Constitution – Radhika Coomaraswamy
  2. Parliament in a Presidential System – Reeza Hameed
  3. The Judiciary under the 1978 Constitution – Nihal Jayawickrama
  4. The Presidency and the Supreme Court: The Constitutional Jurisprudence of Presidential Powers under the 1978 Constitution – Sachintha Dias
  5. The Executive Presidency and Immunity from Suit: Article 35 as Outlier – Niran Anketell
  6. An Eager Embrace: Emergency Rule and Authoritarianism in Republican Sri Lanka – Deepika Udagama
  7. Human Rights and the 1978 Constitution – Laksiri Fernando
  8. The Executive and the Shadow State in Sri Lanka – Ambika Satkunanathan

 

Part II – Policy Rationales for Presidentialism: The Management of Pluralism and Economic Development

9. The Devolution of Power and the Executive Presidency – Luwie Ganeshathasan
10. Flawed Expectations: The Executive Presidency, Resolving the National Question, and Tamils – Kumaravadivel Guruparan
11. Presidentialism, the 1978 Constitution, and the Muslims – A.M. Faaiz
12. Economic Development and the Executive Presidency – Rajesh Venugopal

Part III – Kingship and Presidentialism: Historical Continuities between Past and Present

13. Nation, State, Sovereignty and Kingship: The Pre-Modern Antecedents of the Presidential State – Asanga Welikala
14. Cosmology, Presidentialism and J.R. Jayewardene’s Constitutional Imaginary – Roshan de Silva Wijeyeratne
15. The ‘Line’ between Religion and Politics – Ananda Abeysekera
16. Jathika Chinthanaya and the Executive Presidency – Kalana Senaratne
17. Mahinda Rajapaksa as Modern Mahavasala and Font of Clemency? The Roots of Populist Authoritarianism – Michael Roberts

Volume 2

Part IV – Presidentialism: Comparative Perspectives

18. Failure of Quasi-Gaullist Presidentialism in Sri Lanka – Suri Ratnapala

19. Making of the Imperial U.S. President: A Review – Mark Hager

20. Exporting the American Presidential System to Sri Lanka: A Sceptical View of the Prospects for Democratic Consolidation under and Executive President in a Plural Society – Nikhil Narayan

21. The French Fifth Republic – Kamaya Jayatissa

22. Centralising Authority: Comparing Executive Power in India and Sri Lanka – Rehan Abeyratne

Part V – Presidentialism, Democracy and Pluralism: Alternative Constitutional Forms

23. Some Pillars for Lanka’s Future – Michael Roberts

24. A Reflection on National Unity, the Presidency, and the Institutional Form of the Sri Lankan State – Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu

25. Unconventional Conventions: Power Partnerships in the Sri Lankan Executive – H. Kumarasingham

26. The Overmighty Executive Reconsidered – Chandra R. de Silva

27. The Executive Presidency: A Left Perspective – Jayampathy Wickramaratne

28. Constitutionalism and Sri Lanka’s Gaullist Presidential System – Rohan Edrisinha

Bibliography
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