A way out of the 13th Amendment trap
June 14, 2013, 8:19 pm
By Neville Ladduwahetty
Several prominent civil society members are opposing attempts of the Government to introduce revisions to the 13th Amendment. The issue is not whether there is merit or not in the contemplated revisions. The issue is that the constitutional procedures that need to be followed in the case of a Bill to amend/repeal provisions to the 13th Amendment or any matter set out in the Provincial Council List, makes progressive revisions a daunting undertaking. This makes the 13th Amendment a fetter to progress, and a trap from which the only escape is to repeal it altogether.