COMPROMISE ON POLICE, LAND POWERS FOR PCS
By Kelum Bandara
With the humanitarian operations in the North on the verge of ending, a group of ruling party politicians are preparing a set of proposals for a more meaningful implementation of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.
The group comprises Ministers Tissa Vitarana, D.E.W. Gunasekara, Rajitha Senaratne, Dilan Perera and Douglas Devananda, Eastern Province Chief Minister Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan, and Western Province’s former Chief Minister Reginald Cooray.
They met this week and discussed further amendments to be introduced to the 13th Amendment which led to the establishment of the Provincial Council system in 1987.
Dr. Senaratne told the Daily Mirror they had proposed that police and land powers be devolved to the Provincial Councils as specified in the Constitution but that the police powers be limited to dealing with minor offences.
The Minister said that with regard to land, the group had proposed that powers relating to the acquisition and of lands be vested in the provincial councils with the Centre retaining the power in relation to land distribution
When asked to comment on the purpose being served by the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) which had formulated its power devolution proposals, Dr. Senaratne said a consensus for the extensive devolution of power was reached at the APRC while the intention of the group was to ensure a meaningful implementation of the 13th Amendment.
“Our exercise is to implement what is already in the Constitution. It has to be done as the initial step towards a greater devolution of power,” he said.
When asked whether there was pressure applied by India to fully implement the 13th Amendment, he said the initiative taken by the group was their own but the government took serious note of the Indian request for a power devolution formula to resolve the national question after crushing terrorism militarily.
Peace activist Dr. Kumar Rupasinghe is also involved in the deliberations of this group which is expected to meet again next Monday to give finishing touches to a set of draft proposals. The committee is also planning to submit these proposals for the perusal by the Chief Ministers and obtain their views on them.
dailynews.lk
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