SL: APRC PROPOSALS THIS WEEK...!!! COULD TAMILS TRUST THIS AS A REAL SOLUTION...???

APRC PROPOSALS THIS WEEK

By Sandun A. Jayasekera

The long awaited final proposals and recommendations of the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) will be submitted to President Mahinda Rajapaksa this week, Minister and APRC Chairman Tissa Vitharana told Daily Mirror yesterday.

The main proposals call for the abolishing of the executive presidency; reverting to a Westminster System of parliament; a second or upper chamber to be formed with representatives from the nine provinces and for a village committee system.

The APRC also proposes the setting up of a National Land and Water Commission to operate under the purview of the Central government to determine future policy guidelines for the distribution and alienation of state land and water.

Professor Vitharana ruled out the absolute and unchecked power devolution to the periphery and reiterated that the APRC proposes the establishment of separate state bodies for policy making and monitoring of contentious national issues such as police and land and water.

“I can assure you that as set out in the APRC proposals, the Centre not only decides on the policy framework but can exercise control over the implementation of these powers within the provinces depending on national needs,” Prof. Vitharana said.

The APRC proposes a new Constitution and a Constitutional Court as the main vehicle to resolve the national conflict.

“Representatives of 13 political parties -- 11 of which were allies of the government, the SLMC and the Democratic Peoples’ Front -- discussed key and contentious issues and reached a consensus on most of them, including the setting up of a Constitutional Court to deal with constitutional issues when the new Constitution is implemented. The problems that have arisen in the past when trying to implement the 13th Amendment will not arise since there is a clear division of power between the Centre and the provinces in the proposed Constitution. By doing away with the concurrent list, the Centre and the provinces can exercise the powers without interference by the other,” Minister Vitharana said.

He said adequate funds would be provided through a suitable mechanism to enable the exercise of powers vested with the provinces.

“To strengthen local government, the village committee system will be restored and the Divisional Secretariat is to be made the executive arm of the Pradeshiya Sabha,” Prof. Vitharana said.

He said the grievances of Tamil-speaking people in particular would be suitably addressed while changes would be made to ensure that undue concentration of power which was a feature of the executive presidential system would be diluted.

Many are of the view that the passing of the new Constitution incorporating the APRC proposals will not be difficult as the main opposition UNP has pledged its support to provide a two-thirds majority.

“The military defeat of the LTTE has removed the biggest obstacle to resolving the national question,” Prof. Vitharana said. “The door is now open to collectively work out a political solution that is acceptable to a vast majority of our people. We must do this in a sensible and in a cooperative manner to ensure that the danger of separation is removed forever and we can live together as one Sri Lankan people within an undivided country.”

Once he receives the final report, President Rajapaksa will present it to various political parties, mainly to the UNP, for their suggestions and work out a consensus among all political parties represented in parliament.

President Rajapaksa is on record as having said that any proposal to resolve the conflict would be presented to the people prior to it being presented in parliament. He had maintained that he expected to seek a mandate for the new set of proposals based on the APRC recommendations at the next presidential election expected in the first quarter of next year.

Proposals

• A New Constitution


•Reverting to Westminster system


•Executive powers to be pruned.

• A Constitutional Court

• A second chamber to safeguard minority rights.

• A National Land and Water Commission

• A Village Committee system
Flash back

•The APRC was appointed by President Rajapaksa on July 20, 2006


•Only 13 political parties have taken part in APRC deliberations conducted up to now.


•UNP, JVP, TNA, JHU and the MEP vacated the APRC deliberation.

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