Centre for Policy Alternatives on 13 September, 2017

CPA Concerned with Process to Operationalize the Office on Missing Persons (OMP)

13th September 2017, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) raises serious concerns with the issuing of Gazette (extraordinary) No 2036/21 on 12th September 2017 by President Maithripala Sirisena qua Minister of National Integration and Reconciliation. CPA previously raised concerns when President Sirisena issued Gazette (extraordinary) 2028/45 assigning the Office on Missing Persons (Establishment, Administration And Discharge Of Functions) Act No 14 of 2016 [Office on Missing Persons Act], to the Minister of National Integration & Reconciliation.

CPA’s previous statement raised a key constitutional point in terms of the assigning of subjects or functions of ministries as provided by the 19th Amendment to the Constitution. As pointed out, prior to the 19th Amendment the President could assign to himself any subject or function not assigned to any other Cabinet Minister. This provision was repealed by the 19th Amendment. However a special exception was made for the person holding office as President on the date of commencement of the 19th Amendment. After the General Election of August 2015, the President in terms of Article 43 (2) of the Constitution issued two Gazettes appointing Members of Parliament in charge of Ministries. Thereafter in terms of Article 43 (1) of the Constitution, the President issued Gazette (extraordinary) 1933/13 dated 21st September 2015 which, assigned subjects and functions to the previously allocated Ministries. Furthermore this gazette of (1933/13 dated 21 September 2015) established a “Ministry of National Integration & Reconciliation” which had not been allocated to any Member of Parliament. However the President does not have the power to assign to himself any subjects and functions outside those specified in section 51 of the 19th Amendment. As such the parts of Gazette (extraordinary) 1933/13 dated 21st September 2015, which assigned to the President powers as the Minister of National Integration & Reconciliation are unconstitutional. Following from this, questions are raised with the two gazettes issued in July and September 2017, with the latter being issued by President Sirisena qua Minister of National Integration and Reconciliation. As a result, the legality of the act to operationalize the Office on Missing Persons (OMP) as provided under Section (1)2 of the Office on Missing Persons Act is now in question.

CPA is disappointed by what seems a complete disregard towards the constitutional framework in Sri Lanka and commitments made in 2015 to usher in good governance, rule of law, democracy and reconciliation. It is also a sad reflection of a process that has been flawed from the outset, resulting in numerous delays and obstacles in the enactment of the legislation, establishment and operationalizing of the OMP. CPA welcomed the commitment to establish the OMP, a crucial step in the search for the truth but the continuous delays and errors compounding the establishment of the OMP further exacerbate the uncertainty for thousands who continue to search for the disappeared and missing loved ones. This must be immediately addressed. CPA reiterates its previous call for swift action to correct this erroneous and arbitrary move and to ensure that the establishment and operationalizing of the OMP is done in adherence to the constitutional framework in Sri Lanka. Any exception in this regard will question the integrity of the OMP and much needed work towards addressing past abuses and impunity in Sri Lanka.

Download the release in English here, Tamil here and Sinhala here.

Centre for Policy Alternatives on 29 August, 2017

CPA Challenges the Twentieth Amendment to the Constitution Bill

A Bill titled ‘The Twentieth Amendment to the Constitution’ (the Bill) was placed on the Order Paper of Parliament on 23rd August 2017. The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) and its Executive Director filed a Petition on 28th August 2017 in the Supreme Court, stating that the Bill can only be passed in Parliament with a special majority (2/3rds of the Members of Parliament) and with the approval of the people at a referendum. Our petition is based on the following arguments:

First, the Bill fails to comply with a mandatory procedural requirement for constitutional amendments. Article 154G(2) of the Constitution requires any amendments to the devolution framework established by the Thirteenth Amendment to be referred by the President to every Provincial Council for the expression of their views before being placed on the Order Paper of Parliament. This procedure was not followed in this case. The importance of this requirement is that it enables Provincial Councils to express their views on a constitutional amendment Bill, and to give the government an opportunity to accommodate those views, before a final Bill is presented to Parliament.

Second, CPA contends that the Bill violates Article 3 of the Constitution. Article 3, which affirms the sovereignty of the people, recognises that the franchise is a part of that sovereignty. After the Thirteenth Amendment introduced devolution, this includes the right of citizens in the nine Provinces to elect a Provincial Council of their choice. The Bill negatively affects the people’s franchise because it transfers to Parliament the power of a Provincial Council to decide when that Council should be dissolved. As a result, it delays the opportunity of citizens in Provinces whose Provincial Council terms end before the “specified date” in the Bill, to vote for a new Provincial Council until then. Equally, the mandate citizens have given to Provincial Councils whose terms end after the “specified date” in the Bill is cut short by the Bill.

Following on from this, CPA further argues that the Bill may infringe Article 10 of the Constitution which affirms the freedom of thought and conscience. The Bill would restrict the ability of citizens in certain Provinces to exercise choice as their thought and conscience may dictate at a Provincial Council election. The combined effect of the Bill’s infringements of Articles 3 and 10 is a derogation of the people’s sovereignty by taking away their franchise, and consequently, a violation of their freedom of thought and conscience. The Constitution does not permit any restrictions to be placed on the freedom of thought and conscience.

CPA wishes to emphasise that, beyond its legal defects, the Bill represents a departure from several of the government’s stated promises. First, it creates the perception that Provincial Council elections are being delayed for politically expedient reasons as the government is postponing facing the electorate. This runs counter to the government’s promise to uphold democracy and respect the will of the people, and to facilitate the electoral process in a non-partisan manner. The Bill also backtracks on devolution by taking away the power of Provincial Councils. This contradicts the government’s promise to ensure maximum devolution within a unitary state. The Bill undermines the Thirteenth Amendment and proceeding with it would call into question not only the government’s commitment to devolution, but also its political integrity, and its commitment to democracy.

 

Centre for Policy Alternatives on 17 August, 2017

This House is not a Home: The struggle for addresses and land in the estate sector

The workers of Sri Lanka’s tea estates have faced a myriad of challenges for as long as the industry has existed. A century and a half since the first plantations were introduced, these challenges still persist, along with several others that have arisen over time.

Conditions in the estate sector continue almost unchanged, despite post-war development drives coupled with promises from government to uplift their standards of living and work. Exemplifying the administrative neglect of these communities is the fact that many plantation sector workers have never had a permanent contact address to their name.

The Centre for Policy Alternatives, along with several local partner organisations, has worked on projects aimed at bringing dignity to this marginalised community through obtaining addresses for each home.

Access the content here – it is also embedded below.

This House is not a Home

August 2017 marks 150 years of tea production in Sri Lanka. To mark this anniversary, there have been several celebratory activities and events planned throughout the year, including a Global Tea Party, International Tea Convention and a charity auction. While there has been much reported in the media around these events, there has been little mention of the tea plantation workers without whose contribution the industry would not exist. With this in mind, Groundviews, Maatram and Vikalpa – the Civic Media network of the Centre for Policy Alternatives – will be creating a series of features aimed at raising awareness around the hardships faced by workers and their families.

Centre for Policy Alternatives on 11 August, 2017

150 Years Later: the story of tea

11 August 2017, Colombo, Sri Lanka: In 2017, we celebrate 150 years of tea production in Sri Lanka. To mark this anniversary, several events and activities have been planned throughout the year in Sri Lanka and internationally, including a Global Tea Party, International Tea Convention and a charity auction organised by a variety of stakeholders such as the Ceylon Tea Traders Association, Sri Lanka Tea Board, Tourist Board and tea companies.

While there is much reported in the media around these events, the anniversary celebrations and the future of Ceylon tea, there is little to no mention whatsoever of the tea plantation workers without whose contribution the industry would not exist.

There has been a lot of research and advocacy for decades on the rights of tea plantation workers, life conditions, wages and hardships faced by the workers and their families. In comparison to other parts of Sri Lanka, poverty, nutrition, maternal and children’s health statistics of plantation communities are poorer and further exacerbated by issues related to inadequate housing, alcoholism, gender based violence and unemployment especially among youth. Opinion polls conducted by the Centre for Policy Alternatives show that the community is badly impacted by the economy, have made serious cut backs in the household expenditure and feel little sense of empowerment as citizens of the country.

Groundviews, Vikalpa and Maatram have previously created new media stories, in all three languages across their respective platforms, that highlight the hardships faced by the tea plantation workers.

With the objective of creating more visibility and awareness and to ensure that key narratives do not remain invisible during this significant anniversary, CPA’s civic media output over four weeks will be anchored to key issues facing the tea plantation workers to coincide with the 150-year anniversary celebrations in order to take advantage of the momentum gathered by the celebrations. As Sri Lanka strategises the future of the tea industry, it is critical that the official discussions and reflections seriously consider issues faced by the workers who sustain the industry. The output will focus on the change (or lack thereof) in the lives of the workers 150 years since the start the industry, including a plethora of issues faced by them and their families, challenges for the future, areas for reform and strengthening rights. Content will be in all three languages, through short-form video, photography, long-form journalism and other interactive media.

Download this statement here.

Centre for Policy Alternatives on 4 August, 2017

CPA Calls for the Resignation of Minister Ravi Karunanayake

August 04th 2017, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) has followed recent media reports of the proceedings of the Commission of Inquiry to investigate the issuance of Treasury Bonds with increasing concern. The reported allegations of financial misconduct and conflicts of interest are extremely serious and their political consequences graver. Whatever the outcome of the Commission’s proceedings., the allegations are of sufficient gravity to require the immediate resignation of Ravi Karunanayake MP, the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

The media reports of the on-going hearings of the Commission of Inquiry to investigate and inquire into the issuance of Treasury Bonds during the period of 1st February 2015 to 31st March 2016, (CoI), reveal that Mr Karunanayake is implicated in financial transactions with Mr Arjun Aloysius, a central figure in the high-profile and questionable issuance of bonds by the Central Bank. Witness testimony to the CoI states that a luxury apartment in Colombo was taken on lease by Mr. Aloysius and/or his representatives, and paid for on behalf of Karunanayake, who was then Minister of Finance, and his family. In recorded testimony given to the CoI on 2nd August 2017, Minister Karunanayake noted that it was his wife and daughter who found and procured this apartment and that he personally “knew nothing” about how the apartment he and his family resided in for nine months was paid for and procured.

Without prejudice to the proceedings of the CoI, CPA finds the Minister’s testimony not only entirely implausible, but also deeply damaging to the credibility and reputation of the institutions of government. This is especially so for a government elected on a platform of good governance and anti-corruption. We firmly believe that this is a view shared by the majority of our fellow citizens, who are dismayed by the persistence of corruption and the current government’s woefully inadequate measures to address it.

CPA wishes to remind the government of its central promise to eradicate corruption at all levels of government and to hold to account anyone who is complicit without fear or favour. We call upon Minister Karunanayake to take the principled step of resigning from ministerial office forthwith, and to cooperate fully with on-going and any future investigations. We believe this is an essential prerequisite for restoring public confidence in the government’s commitment to its mandate, and we reiterate that the failure to do so will seriously impede the realisation of every other aspect of the government’s reform agenda.

Given the hope and expectation raised in 2015 regarding the restoration of good governance and the rule of law, the failure of Minister Karunanayake to resign, and the failure of the government to ensure his resignation, will risk unfavourable comparison with its predecessors. More critically, it will erode the credibility of our public institutions and processes in the eyes of citizens, and fatally undermine broader reforms.

Dr Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu
Executive Director

 

Download the release in English.

Centre for Policy Alternatives on 4 August, 2017

CPA extended their hand to school children in the Matara district affected by the recent floods

Although the mandate of the Centre for Policy Alternatives(CPA) has been research and advocacy, when the need has arisen CPA has contributed towards humanitarian relief. The distribution of essential educational equipment for   children affected by the recent floods is one such example. The initiative was taken by the staff of CPA and its election monitoring arm the Centre For Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV).
The equipment was officially handed over to Mr. Senaka Palliyaguru, the Matara Municipal Council Commissioner who rendered a immense service to the general public during the said disaster situation, by the Executive Director of CPA  and Co-Convenor of CMEV, Dr. P. Saravanamuttu.​
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 24 July, 2017

Press Release: Importance of Adhering to the Constitutional and Legal Framework in the Establishment and Operationalizing of the Office on Missing Persons (OMP)

 

24th July 2017, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) is deeply concerned by the failure of President Maithripala Sirisena to adhere to the provisions of the Constitution in allocating subjects and functions to Ministers, particularly in relation to the Office on Missing Persons (OMP). On 19th July 2017 President Sirisena issued Gazette (extraordinary) 2028/45 assigning the Office on Missing Persons (Establishment, Administration And Discharge Of Functions) Act No 14 of 2016 [Office on Missing Persons Act], to the Minister of National Integration & Reconciliation. By doing so the President has raised a matter of great constitutional significance, which had been looming for almost two years.

CPA draws attention to the constitutional framework provided by the 19th Amendment to the Constitution enacted on 28th April 2015. Prior to the 19th Amendment the President could assign to himself any subject or function not assigned to any other Cabinet Minister. This provision was repealed by the 19th Amendment. However a special exception was made for the person holding office as President on the date of commencement of the 19th Amendment.

After the General Election of August 2015, the President in terms of Article 43 (2) of the Constitution issued two Gazettes appointing Members of Parliament in charge of Ministries. Thereafter in terms of Article 43 (1) of the Constitution, the President issued Gazette (extraordinary) 1933/13 dated 21st September 2015 which, assigned subjects and functions to the previously allocated Ministries.

Furthermore this gazette of (1933/13 dated 21 September 2015);

  • Established a “Ministry of National Integration & Reconciliation” which had not been allocated to any Member of Parliament. The gazette also did not specify any laws that were to be implemented by this Ministry.
  • Allocated to the President all subjects and functions and Departments, Public Corporations & Statutory Institutions that are not specifically assigned to any other Minister.

However the President does not have the power to assign to himself any subjects and functions outside those specified in section 51 of the 19th Amendment. As such the parts of Gazette (extraordinary) 1933/13 dated 21st September 2015, which assigned to the President powers as the Minister of National Integration & Reconciliation are unconstitutional.

This would have been only a matter of academic importance so long as the President did not give to himself any powers qua Minister of National Integration & Reconciliation. However, with Gazette (extraordinary) 2028/45 assigning the OMP to the Minister of National Integration & Reconciliation, serious concerns are raised regarding the constitutionality of such measures. In terms of operationalizing the OMP, the Minister must issue a gazette in terms of Section 1(2) of the Office on Missing Persons Act. When issuing this gazette, the President will be acting qua Minister of National Integration & Reconciliation. CPA is of the belief that the President issuing such a gazette qua Minister of National Integration & Reconciliation would raise questions of constitutional importance and uncertainty regarding the validity of the OMP so constituted.

Swift measures are needed to address what seems on the face of it an oversight but may if not corrected demonstrate a lack of regard to the Constitution of Sri Lanka. CPA urges the President and the government to take immediate steps to adhere to the relevant constitutional provisions and assign the Ministry of National Integration & Reconciliation to a Minister other than the President or assign the Office On Missing Persons Act to a different Ministry. CPA believes that the failure to do so would be a violation of the Constitution and negate the positive steps taken by the government to enact the Office on Missing Persons Act. Soon after this, the Minister in question must issue a gazette as provided in the Office on Missing Persons Act, making the Act operational. Subsequent to this, CPA urges the Constitutional Council to publicly call for nominations to the OMP and to ensure that those recommended to the President have the expertise, skill and diversity needed for the effective functioning of the OMP as well as importantly, the trust of victims, affected communities and civil society. CPA reiterates its earlier calls for timely action and the need to establish the first independent mechanism to address the grievances of thousands of citizens of Sri Lanka.

Download the release in English, Sinhala and Tamil.