Why this Dissension amoung the Cabinet Ministers on the 13 Amendment ?

Minister Champika Ranawaka of JHU without an unwavering conviction for the removal of the 13Amendment

 

Tissa Vitharan  the Technology and Research Minister  representing the LSSP had said that the 13 Amendment is already a weak Amendment and therefore there is no reason that it should be removed.   But if that is the case why not remove  it instead of keeping a weak controversial amendment.  Tissa Vitharana had added, “Whatever amendments to the 13A, could be presented to the legislature after the polls were over, as the people’s representatives could take a decision at that stage.”

The removal of the 13 Amendment if a decision is taken to remove it would take a period of time- drafting the relevant Act, presenting it to the Supreme court for legal approval and then present it to the Parliament. In the mean time  the elections could still be held in the North under the provisions of the 13Amendment, but the action for its removal should be initiated now.  Thereafter a new system of provincial administration should be prepared to affect all Provincial Councils once the 13Amendment is removed.  All actions pertaining to land and police powers etc., under the 13 Amendment  should in the mean time be  suspended  until its removal from the Constitution, and new provisions made under a new Act.

The 13Amendment which our legislators do not seem to understand  is a foreign law-thought out and prepared by India and forced to be included  in our Constitution. It will neither help the Tamil people, nor the other communities. Its is its  removal and adopting a system appropriate to the country which would help reconciliation and uniting the people and provide them with a true representative system of Provincial Councils.

Tissa Vitharana had further added that, “ The Northerners, who had undergone enough suffering over the last three decades, should be left in peace to exercise their franchise at a free and fair election without creating unnecessary issues and confrontations. ”

This in fact is the very reason why the 13Amendment should be removed, as it is foreign to our people who went through untold, suffering and misery since its introduction in to the Constitution in 1987.  India when it forced the 13Amendment on Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka was  in disarray and  nobody knew what was going to be the outcome of terrorism, which was very powerful at the time  and thought invincible.

The 13 Amendment was an attempt to subjugate  a sovereign State according to  whims and fancies of  the leaders of a  neighbouring State profiting from the weakness of Sri Lanka.  Therefore, one cannot understand the logic of those Cabinet Ministers demanding  the “ Amendment of shame”  to be retained in  Constitution of Sri Lanka. 

The 13 Amendment should be removed in its entirety, and removing of the President’s right to merge two provinces is not the worst that has been  removed.  In fact there is already a legal ruling which removed the  merger of North and East. And the decision to remove the right of the President to re-merge provinces is an eye washer to fool the people.

The government has not said any thing with regard to the removal of the police and land rights or  given any reason  why the whole of the 13 Amendment should not be removed, instead of removing bits and pieces of it..

In the meantime  Rauf Hakeem the Minster of Justice says,“We must remember that the 13th Amendment came as a solution to the National problem after a long-drawn-out process.”  This is « bull shit ».  This man seems to have no idea  how the 13 Amendment came to be included in the Constitution. 

Rauf Hakeem was a sympathiser of the terrorists and even signed a MoU with Prabhakaran.  He is not a patriot who loves the Country.  His interest is in his Community and an eventual Islamizing of Sri Lanka. Rauff Hakeem says that the13 Amendment came after a long drawn up  process as a solution to the National problem.  We wonder from where  he got that idea .

It is only the Sinhala Buddhists, and those with real patriotic sentiments who  want the 13 Amendment removed, as they are  concerned about the unitary status of Sri Lanka and will not hesitate to sacrifice their lives to save the country even if the other Communities were to look askance. 

Karu Jayasuriya, who is a copy confirm of Mangala Samaraweera bleats his protests against the government, having failed to be the second in command in the UNP after leaving the  Cabinet of the President Mahinda Rajapakse.

Ranil Wickramasinghe is crying over a repealed 17 Amendment and  threatens to boycott the PSC.  These UNP stalwarts  are only politically motivated about keeping the 13 Amendment, and do not seem to be over concerned about the country’s  future and the reconciliation of the Communities. They do not see that the 13 Amendment is a deterrent for reconciliation of Communities , which will keep alive the hatred of the Tamils against the other Communities.  

It  had been a habit with Ranil Wickramasinghe under the previous  President as well  to refuse to cooperate to find solutions for national  problems. Under the President Chandrika Kumaratunga  Ranil Wickramasinghe  refused to attend  all party discussions to find solutions to terrorism to which he was invited. 

Ranil Wickramasinghe panders to the TNA hoping that he may be able to get the  votes of the North in a future Presidential Election if the TNA win the PC elections under the 13Amenment.  He is the man who has still refused to give credit to the Armed Forces of Sri Lanka for the elimination of terrorism. 

He has demanded that the Army Personnel should not be appointed  Governors in  Provinces.  The Army Personnel have on the other hand every right to hold positions of importance in the North and East as it was they who contributed for the emancipation of the people in the North and East, from the bonds of terrorism, risking their lives in that effort.

The people of Sri Lanka should take note of these non progressive   reactionary attitude of the UNP leadership and politically isolate UNP under Ranil Wickramasinghe  and refuse to vote for the UNP in any future election.

The Catholic Bishops also have ganged together against the removal of the 13 Amendment.  This is no surprise as the Catholic Church had a very close connection with the LTTE and Catholic Father Emmanuel is all out to divide Sri Lanka  with his World Tamil Forum.   The Catholic Priests of  Sri Lanka  do not take patriotic decisions on  any issue that concerns the country as a whole, as they are first bound by the dictates that come from Rome, and their patriotisms is towards the Holy See. So much for their love for Sri Lanka.

India fears a break away of TamilNadu if the Central government does not give into all their demands,  and fears that with it several other Indian States may follow. The President of Sri Lanka perhaps considers  a broken away TamilNadu may be a worst  alternative than a TamilNadu as a part of the Government of India.  But those are political  moves that are beyond the control of Sri Lanka, therefore  Sri Lanka  should take precautions to meet such political evolutions in India, while doing what is necessary for Sri Lanka as an Independent Sovereign State.

The LSSP and CP have been reduced to mere Name Boards. They are hoping to comeback making their decision to oppose the removal of the 13Amendment  as their determination to uphold their absurd principle, which is  to  assure the diminishing  party cadre, their loyalty to the LSSP and to  keep themselves politically  afloat. Their opposition to the 13 Amendment is with that selfish motive  and to present a different opinion to that of the JVP, which incidentally is for the removal of the 13 Amendment.

In evaluating the issue there appears to be no  valid reason for these errant members of the Cabinet to oppose the 13 Amendment.  They should ask in  one voice to remove it from the Constitution. 

The Minister who stands by his unwavering conviction to remove the  “unholy” 13 Amendment is  Champika Ranawaka of the JHU.  Rajitha Senaratne has gone to the extent of saying that he would resign from his Ministry if the 13 Amendment is removed. One cannot understand what he stands to gain by maintaining the 13Amenment in the Constitution. He may have a secret agenda for his vehement protest.  But his leaving the Ministry is not a great loss, as Sri Lanka stands to gain much more from removing the 13 Amendment.