Federalism and the 13th Amendment

by C. Silva

(August 13, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Some of our politicians have stated that calling for the implementation of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution is a case of undermining the war effort. Those who advocate such a move are considered ‘unpatriotic’. They seem to forget the oath they took which is to uphold the Constitution. Therefore it is the responsibility of all the members of the national legislature to implement the 13th amendment. Their failure to do so, is a violation of the constitution they have pledged to uphold. All of us stand in contravention of the constitution by not implementing the 13th amendment.

Those who say otherwise should re-read the oath they took-before calling others ‘unpatriotic’. Our country has been blighted by twenty five years of conflict and we may overcome terrorism through military means but the root cause needs to be tackled which is the oppression of the Tamil people and the minorities. Let us be very clear they have been betrayed and have lost confidence in the Southern Leadership.

As a first step we should immediately implement the 13th amendment which does not require a referendum or a two thirds majority, and through its implementation, gain the confidence of the minority parties and the Tamils. Through the implementation of the 13th amendment the people would learn how provincial councils work and that it is not a derogation of the unitary state nor separation. We in Sri Lanka seem to misunderstand the word Federalism - the problem being that it was first mooted by the Tamil politicians and it is ingrained in the Sinhala psyche that federalism equates to separation. Federalism is not a bad word as suggested by some. In European Countries and even India, Australia, Malaysia to name a few have a Federal systems where they enjoy the concept of power sharing. We need to tackle the misunderstanding that prevails in the South. If we do this, then I believe we can move forward and the final recommendations of the APRC too would be properly implemented.
- Sri Lanka Guardian