Burma: Is The Long Peace Process Coming To A Halt? – Analysis

A family portrait, with Aung San Suu Kyi (in white) as a toddler, taken shortly before her father's assassination in 1947.

Burma's Thein Sein. Photo Credit: Chatham House, Wikipedia Commons.

By C. S. Kuppuswamy-JANUARY 28, 2016

“Without a lasting peace with ethnic minority groups, who make up around 40 percent of the population, any future administration will have difficulty ensuring a nationwide buy-in for its reform agenda and providing the political stability needed to manage and develop the country’s resource-rich frontiers, where most ethnic groups are located”. — Murray Hiebert and Phuong Nguyen, Asia Sentinel, 22 August 2014.

“Seen in a broader perspective, the entire “peace process” is flawed because the government wants to put the cart before the horse by insisting on an agreement—the one signed on Oct. 15—before any political issues have even been discussed.” — Bertil Lintner, The Irrawaddy, January 11, 2016.

The peace process that was started by the Thein Sein Government in August 2011 has come to a dead end with the conclusion of the five day Union Peace Conference (marking the beginning of a long-sought political dialogue) held at Naypyidaw from 12-16 January, 2016. One of the proposals approved in this conference was that the political dialogue must conclude within the next three to five years.

Vice President Sai Mauk Kham said, in his closing remarks at this Union Peace Conference, that documentation of all discussions throughout the conference will be handed over to the new government when it assumes power (The Irrawaddy – January 18, 2016).

Aung San Suu Kyi was however critical of this peace process and the so called Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) because the pact was not inclusive. She said “now we are ready to lead the peace process, because we have the power invested in the mandate given to us by the people and ethnic minorities” – (Mizzima – 17 January, 2016).

The cooperation of the army is of paramount importance for this peace process to be successful. In this connection it is significant that Gen Tin Maung Win at the end of the peace conference said that “the Tatmadaw was ready and willing to co-operate with Suu Kyi in the continuation of the Peace Process (DVB – 15 January, 2016).                  READ MORE

FactCheck: will Muslim women be deported if they don’t learn English?

FactCheck: will Muslim women be deported if they don’t learn English?

January 18, 2016 

“Muslim women must learn English or risk deportation”.

That was a typical headline today after the Prime Minister announced a £20m fund for English lessons for “isolated” women and a new language test for some immigrants.

Mr Cameron said there were 190,000 women in the UK with little or no English. The government wants Muslim brides who apply for permission to stay with their husbands in Britain to face tougher language tests.

In an interview with the BBC’s Today programme, he appeared to suggest that even women who have children after coming to the UK might be forced to leave if they don’t improve their English.

Do Muslim women struggle with English?

The PM said 190,000 Muslim women – 22 per cent of the population – had little or no English.

This number comes from the Office for National Statistics and can be found by clicking on the fifth table in this list.

The figures – based on the 2011 census – show that nearly 152,000 English Muslim women and girls aged 16 and over “cannot speak English well” and another 38,000 “cannot speak English”. That is indeed about 22 per cent of Muslim female over-16s recorded in the census.

The percentage for women who gave their religion as Hindu was just under 13 per cent, although that may not be a useful comparison – the average Hindu woman might have been living here for longer, be better educated, or have started out with more English.

We would really want to know how Muslim women’s English skills compare to women with similar backgrounds and profiles who follow different religions, but we don’t have a control group to hand.

We don’t know from these figures how many Muslim women with poor English are recent arrivals, or how likely Muslim women are to improve their language skills over time compared to other groups.

The figures don’t prove or disprove Mr Cameron’s claim that many Muslim woman speak “little or no English despite many having lived here for decades”.

Is there a link between language proficiency and extremism?

                                                            Full Story>>>

Spread of Zika alarming, 4 million cases a possibility: WHO

Gleyce Kelly embraces her daughter Maria Geovana, who has microcephaly, in Recife, Brazil, January 25, 2016.

BY TOM MILES AND STEPHANIE NEBEHAY-Fri Jan 29, 2016

The Zika virus, linked to severe birth defects in thousands of babies in Brazil, is "spreading explosively" and could infect as many as 4 million people in the Americas, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday.

Director-General Margaret Chan told members of the U.N. health agency's executive board the spread of the mosquito-borne disease had gone from a mild threat to one of alarming proportions. The WHO would convene an emergency meeting on Monday to help determine its response, she said.

"The level of alarm is extremely high," Chan told the Geneva gathering.

"Last year, the virus was detected in the Americas, where it is now spreading explosively. As of today, cases have been reported in 23 countries and territories in the region," Chan said, promising quick action from the WHO.

The agency was criticized last year for reacting too slowly to West Africa's Ebola epidemic, which killed more than 10,000 people, and it promised to cut its response time.

"We are not going to wait for the science to tell us there is a link (with birth defects). We need to take actions now," Chan said, referring to the condition called microcephaly in which babies are born with abnormally small heads and brains that have not developed properly.

There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika, which is like dengue and causes mild fever, rash and red eyes. An estimated 80 percent of people infected have no symptoms. Much of the effort against the illness focuses on protecting people from mosquitoes and reducing mosquito populations.

Developing a safe and effective vaccine could take a year, WHO Assistant Director Bruce Aylward said, and it would take six to nine months just to confirm whether Zika is the actual cause of the birth defects, or if the two are just associated.

"In the area of vaccines, I do know that there has been some work done by some groups looking at the feasibility of a Zika virus vaccine. Now something like that, as people know, is going to be a 12-month-plus time frame," he said.

More Story>>>

How to meditate on the go: A guide for the busy working woman

•  By Radhika Sanghani-
28 JANUARY 2016

M

editation has been scientifically proven to work just as well as anti-depressants. 

Hurrah - for those of you who can actually master the art.

Most people I know struggle to meditate. We spend our lives surrounded by to-do lists, rush hour commutes and constant thinking. There is something alien about switching our brains off and emptying our minds for 30 seconds, let alone 30 minutes.

But, after speaking to meditation experts Emma Mills and Andy Puddicombe, I have learnt meditation isn’t about not having thoughts; it is about not being attached to your thoughts. Which is all very well in theory, but when you’re working long hours and constantly busy, how do you find the time to do it?
Well fear not. Here are our six tips to meditating-on-the-go:

1. Walking to the station

Even if you’re only walking a few minutes to the bus stop or tube in the morning, you can take this time to “walk mindfully”. So instead of rushing through your familiar commute, be mindful of the way you are walking and the ground beneath your feet.

This will help you stay in the moment instead of letting your mind wander through your never-ending to-do list.

2. Tube meditation

The calming commute doesn’t need to stop there. It can continue onto the tube, or any public transport, where you can take the time to focus on your breathing.

You can even meditate in rush hour CREDIT: TOM KING / ALAMY

One of Mills’ top tips is to notice where you got on the tube, and see how many stops you can focus on your breathing for. Just noticing how you are breathing in and out with stop you planning what to have for lunch, what to prepare for your meeting and might even make you so aware you won’t need a morning coffee.

3. Mindful conversation

Most of us don’t actually listen when we’re speaking to someone. Instead we are half-absorbing their words, and using the rest of our mind to think about what we’re going to say next or wondering about how we are coming across.

To stop being so focused on ourselves, and reach a calm, happy state of productivity, we should try and really listen to what is being said to us. It puts the focus onto the other person and makes them feel comfortable.

4. Accept your thoughts

“I can’t empty my mind of all these thoughts.” This is the typical issue people have with meditation, but the key is to accept your though

Mills advises looking at your internal thoughts in the way you would look at the weather. “Have a look at your internal weather forecast and notice if things are particularly stormy or sunny, but don’t judge or try to change them,” she says. “This is the key to not being attached to your thoughts.”

Puddicombe adds: “Meditation is a bit like falling asleep or falling in love...you can’t make it happen. In fact the harder you try the further it gets away. It is a natural process of unwinding which requires surprisingly little effort.”

5. Desk breathing

Sit at your desk and focus entirely on your breathing. You don’t need to close your eyes and cross your legs to meditate, you can just take a few minutes to focus on the tip of your nose to try and feel the breath coming in and out of your nostrils.

Take a moment to stop working at your desk CREDIT: ALAMY

As strange as it may sound, doing it will help remind you that your body is automatic and will keep on functioning even if your mind is a mess.

6. Tech it up

Invest in an app like Headspace, co-founded with Puddicombe, which allows you to meditate wherever you are for 10 minutes. The app guides you through the process and helps you ‘check in’ with your body and ‘scan’ it.

Puddicombe says: “We call Headspace ‘a gym membership for the mind’ - the benefits range from better sleep, to  healthier relationships and less stress at work.”

Only a federal solution will ensure undivided Sri Lanka: TNA

 January 26, 2016
At a time when Sri Lanka is taking steps to draft a new constitution, its main Opposition Tamil National Alliance (TNA) has emphatically said that only a solution based on federalism will ensure an undivided Sri Lanka.

“We will state our position that to the two main parties and the Sinhala people in this country that it is an arrangement that is on federal lines that will best ensure that there will not be a call for the division of the country,” TNA’s Jaffna district parliamentarian M.A Sumanthiran told reporters in Colombo on Tuesday.

Claiming that the concept of federalism is not new to the country, he said that none other the late prime minister S.W.R.D Bandaranaike has introduced it in 1926.

Ironically, it’s the same leader who introduced the Sinhala-only policy in 1956, which resulted in Tamil armed struggle.

“The reason perhaps why the “unitary state” is favoured now is because some people think that it is the only way in which you can prevent the country from dividing. We have said that the we don’t want the country to divide. We say that the best way to ensure that the country doesn’t divide is to have a power-sharing arrangement that is in consistent with the principle of federalism,” MP Sumanthiran told the press at the Opposition Leader’s house.

“Then the country won’t divide,” he said.

According to reports, TNA leader R. Sampanthan has already left for the UK to study first-hand the federal practices in Scotland. His close confidante Sumanthiran is expected to join him later this week.

40,000 dead is a ‘myth’ claims Sri Lanka’s disappearances commission chairman

27 January 2016

Reports of over 40,000 Tamil civilians having been killed during the final stages of Sri Lanka’s armed conflict is a “myth” claimed the chairman of Sri Lanka’s presidential commission into disappearances on Wednesday.

Justice Maxwell Paranagama released a statement, criticising  a Channel 4 News reportwhich detailed unresolved human rights abuses and continued military occupation in the North-East.

“Once again Mr Snow makes repeated references to the genocidal figure of 40,000 civilians killed in the final weeks of the war,” said Justice Paranagama, adding that “all available figures... makes the allegation of 40,000 a myth”.

He went on to address reports that the Sri Lankan army deliberately shelled ‘No Fire Zones’ declared during the closing weeks of the conflict by saying, “the LTTE never agreed to no fire zones… Therefore in international law they do not exist”.

He has previously rejected the UN Panel of Experts' estimated death toll of 40,000 Tamil civilians at the end of the armed conflict in 2009, as well as criticism from UN human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad al Hussain who called for the disbandment of the commission.

Justice Paranagama also rubbished reports that a previous inquiry he held had recommended an internationally involved mechanism, stating that “the proposed accountability mechanism… is purely a domestic process”.

The chairman went on to claim that the commission that he chairs has “confidence” from residents in the North, despite repeated protests outside sittings.

See the full statement below.

Sri Lanka's Crossroads

Dear Friends,

Yesterday Channel 4 News reported from Sri Lanka. You can watch the report here.

The report comes at a key time for Sri Lanka's future. Over the next few months the nature of Sri Lanka's process for dealing with the past will become apparent. It will either deal with Sri Lanka's legacy of pain or suffering, or it will fail yet again, further eroding trust and forging a path which could lead back to war.

Of crucial importance will be the involvement of international judges and prosecutors, without which survivors will not have any confidence in the process.

Yet already this is proving to be a difficult issue: last Thursday Sri Lanka's President categorically ruled that out, but in yesterday's interview for Channel 4 the Prime Minister stated that international involvement was still possible.

This is a vital issue, meaning that we have a vital few months ahead of us. And so we need your support. 

We need to ensure that the world's attention does not drift away from Sri Lanka. We need to make sure international scrutiny and pressure is maintained. Please help us to do that by:

• Sharing this video with family and friends.
• Sharing this picture to tell President Sirisena there must be no U turn.
• Giving what you can afford to support our campaigns.

Many thanks,

Sri Lanka Campaign

P.S. The video is also on YouTube here and here. 

Sri Lanka’s killing fields: here shoes still lie on the ground

-- 

Sri Lanka’s disappeared “probably dead” – Prime Minister

Sri Lanka: New Government Makes Significant Progress

Impunity, Detention Without Trial Persist Amid Reforms

JANUARY 27, 2016

(New York) – Sri Lanka’s government, elected in January 2015, ended the pervasive culture of surveillance and censorship and embarked on reforms aimed to undo years of increasingly authoritarian rule, Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2016. While it opened dialogues both domestically and abroad, the government still faces key concerns, including wartime accountability and prolonged detention without trial.

In the 659-page World Report 2016, its 26th edition, Human Rights Watch reviews human rights practices in more than 90 countries. In his introductory essay, Executive DirectorKenneth Roth writes that the spread of terrorist attacks beyond the Middle East and the huge flows of refugees spawned by repression and conflict led many governments to curtail rights in misguided efforts to protect their security. At the same time, authoritarian governments throughout the world, fearful of peaceful dissent that is often magnified by social media, embarked on the most intense crackdown on independent groups in recent times.

“Sri Lanka’s new government has begun to address some of the country’s chronic human rights problems, but much remains to be done,” said Brad Adams, Asia director. “The pervasive culture of fear is largely gone and positive measures have been adopted, but the previous government’s disastrous restructuring of independent state institutions needs to be fully dismantled.”

The government of President Maithripala Sirisena promptly initiated a series of constitutional reforms, including establishing a constitutional council and restoring the independence of the judiciary, police, and human rights commissions. Civil society groups are once again able to speak out safely on issues of concern. In December, the government signed the United Nations Convention against Enforced Disappearance, a step toward tackling a massive decades-long problem.

The government has yet to fulfill its pledge to abolish the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). Authorities agreed to release some PTA detainees on bail, “rehabilitate” others, and prosecute the remainder, but arrests under the PTA continued throughout the year. Inadequate information from the security forces means there are no reliable numbers on those detained under the law. Moreover, many imprisoned PTA detainees were convicted after being tortured to confess. The government has still not put forth a plan to provide redress for those unjustly detained under the PTA.

In August, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights issued a scathing report on unlawful attacks, killings, torture, sexual violence, and attacks on relief aid by both sides during the civil war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam that ended in 2009. At the Human Rights Council in October 2015, member states including Sri Lanka endorsed a consensus resolution calling on the Sri Lankan government to implement the report’s many recommendations, including to establish a special counsel to investigate and prosecute alleged wartime abuses, and to include foreign judges and prosecutors in a Sri Lankan tribunal.

Soon after the council resolution passed, the government began the process of public consultations on accountability and truth mechanisms. The government also began to investigate some emblematic rights violations during the conflict, including the killing and enforced disappearance of journalists, but progress remained slow. Chronic abuses distinct from the civil war, such as police abuse and security sector reform, also need to be addressed.

“For years Sri Lanka was sinking deeper into human rights despair, so the changed atmosphere under the new government has given hope to many victims of past abuses, civil society activists, and international observers,” Adams said. “It’s now time for the Sirisena government to turn its positive words and initial actions into institutional changes that will have a lasting impact on the country.” 

Politics Of Beef: A Diversionary Tactic?

By Latheef Farook –January 27, 2016

Latheef Farook

 All what the people expect is for the government to act and bring those who ruined the country to justice

Muslim community voted en masse for President Maithripala Sirisena in the 8 January 2015 presidential elections to free themselves from the persecution of handful Sinhala racists such as Bodu Bala Sena who are suspected local and foreign mercenaries.

However Muslims and non Muslims alike who voted for him now raise the question following the shocking meeting of BBS team led by its extremist leader Ven. Galagoda Atte Gnanasara Thera with President Sirisena “whether these very same racists who virtually turned the country into a killing field were given a new lease of life.”

This meeting has caused serious concern especially among Muslims as notorious anti Muslim Ven. Gnanasara Thera who remains hell bent on setting fire to the island’s Muslims described the meeting as “success”.

This comes in the midst of President Sirisena’s announcement to ban cow slaughter -an issue rewarding racists and create the environment to generate hatred towards Muslims.

It is common knowledge that Ven. Gnanasara Thera is not a man of peace. He was rejected even by his own people during the last general elections. Video clippings of his speeches inciting Sinhalese speak volume for his agenda.                                                             Read More

UN urged to ensure foreign judges’ participation in war crimes investigation

President’s position on UNHRC resolution

By Shamindra Ferdinando-January 27, 2016, 7:10 am 

Alleging that President Maithripala Sirisena has recently undermined a US-led Geneva Resolution co-sponsored by the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL), the Global Tamil Forum (GTF) has requested foreign governments to pressure the President to fully implement the proposals. In addition to western powers, the European Union, too, endorsed the Resolution.

UK based GTF spokesperson Suren Surendiran yesterday told The Island that they expected all those who had backed the Resolution 30/1 to ensure that the GoSL fulfilled its obligations.

The 47-member United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) unanimously adopted the Resolution on Oct. 1, 2015.

The GTF spokesman was responding to President Maithripala Sirisena’s recent declaration that the proposed inquiry would be wholly a domestic investigation and there was absolutely no requirement for foreign intervention in this matter. The President also rejected international deadline for the launch of the investigation.

A three-member panel of ‘experts’ in March 2011 accused the Sri Lankan military of massacring over 40,000 civilians during the final phase of the offensive on the Vanni east front.

Surendiran emphasised that the Resolution which dealt with accountability issues couldn’t be diluted under any circumstances. In accordance with the resolution, the GoSL had accepted Commonwealth and other foreign judges, defence lawyers and authorised prosecutors as well as investigators in the proposed judicial processes. "Sri Lanka will breach the provisions of a resolution that it co-sponsored if President Sirisena’s assertions are implemented."

The GTF pointed out that President Maithripala Sirisena’s stand was contrary to that of the GoSL.

The GTF spokesperson said the grouping and its partners in Sri Lanka as well as outside threw their weight behind the Geneva Resolution as they believed in a genuine process to address accountability issues. Post-war national reconciliation wouldn’t be a reality unless the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government fully implemented the Geneva Resolution, Surendiran warned.

The GTF work closely with the four-party Tamil National Alliance (TNA). They pursue a common agenda.

TNA spokesperson and Jaffna District MP M.A. Sumanthiran told the media in Colombo that President Maithripala Sirisena’s statement was contrary to the Geneva Resolution.

The GTF has also urged United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Prince Zeid to ensure the full implementation of the Resolution 30/1 without any exceptions. Prince Zeid is scheduled to visit Colombo early February.

Responding to a query, Surendiran said the Tamil community expected the GoSL to clarify its position in the wake of President Maithripala Sirisena’s contradictory statement. "We are really disappointed and deeply concerned over the situation," Surendiran said. The GTF official said the President’s statement had been also contrary to a joint communique issued by the GoSL and European Union on January 21, the same day as the President’s contradiction, reiterating commitment to the full and speedy implementation of the Resolution 30/1.

The October 2015 Resolution had called for a hybrid war crimes court with the participation of Commonwealth and other international judges, Surendiran said.

The GTF alleged that the unexpected position taken by the President had been even contrary to the recommendations made by the Paranagama Commission. Retired High Court judge Maxwell Paranagama has recommended foreign observers as well as international technical assistance to a domestic process.

The GTF warned the President that he would certainly lose the trust unless he adhered to the Resolution.

Surendiran said that the Report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Investigation on Sri Lanka released on Sept. 28, 2015, in no uncertain terms explained the pivotal importance of having international intervention in the proposed investigation. The GTF official stressed that Sri Lankan judiciary lacked capacity to inquire into war crimes.

Alleging that President Maithripala Sirisena had obviously distanced himself from commitments made in Geneva, Surendiran recalled Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera assuring the international community of the new government’s resolve to address accountability issues. In this context, the GTF quoted below sections from the speech delivered in the UNHRC on 14 September 2015, by the Lankan Foreign Minister; "…Therefore, I say to the skeptics: Don’t judge us by the broken promises, experiences and u-turns of the past....the Government of President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has the political will and the courage of their convictions to ensure that we take the country forward, breaking the barriers of ignorance, fear, prejudice and hate….

….My plea to you Ladies and Gentlemen, is: TRUST US and join us to work together and create the momentum required to move forward and take progressive, meaningful and transformative steps to create a new Sri Lanka…"

Current UNHRC members are Albania, Algeria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bolivia, Botswana, Burundi, China, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Ethiopia, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Maldives, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Namibia, Netherlands, Nigeria, Panama, Paraguay, Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, South Africa, Switzerland, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Togo, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) and Vietnam.

‘Need safeguards against majoritarianism’

Jayampathy Wickramaratne on the importance of an inclusive Constitution in Sri Lanka

T. RAMAKRISHNAN

January 27, 2016

Jayampathy Wickramaratne, 67, is one of the most keenly watched persons in Sri Lanka at the moment. He chairs the committee appointed by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to provide technical support to the Constitution-making process currently underway. A constitutional expert and Member of Parliament, he had served as a member of the team that drafted the Constitution Bill of 2000, which emphasised the country’s pluralistic character. He was also a signatory to the “majority report” of the All-Party Representative Committee of 2006-2010, proposing a strong power-sharing arrangement.

In an interview with T. Ramakrishnan, Dr. Wickramaratne downplays his new role, saying it is like that of “any other Member of Parliament and an ordinary member of the proposed Constitutional Assembly”. He dwells forth on devolution of powers, the importance of a “democratic” and “very inclusive” Constitution, and the urgency of the Constitution-making process, while clarifying that his views reflect those of the majority group of the Lanka Sama Samaja Party and not necessarily those of the government. Excerpts:

What are the main weaknesses of the present Constitution? What is your response to the criticism that Articles 16, 80 (3) and 84 undermine the supremacy of the Constitution?

This Constitution has been built on the foundations of a very centralised form of government. The foundations have already been shattered by the 13th Amendment, 17th Amendment and 19th Amendment. That’s why we need a new Constitution built on a new foundation. I agree that there are several provisions which undermine the concept of supremacy. There is no post-enactment judicial review. A law can be challenged only at the Bill stage. The pre-Constitution laws continue despite being inconsistent with the Constitution. There was also the immunity clause, by which the President was totally immune from judicial review for his actions. Now, we have corrected that to a large extent through the 19th Amendment.

More Story>>>

Priorites in Working Towards a Political Solution – Friday Forum

27/01/2016

One year after the democratic changes our country witnessed, which also rekindled efforts towards reconciliation, the Friday Forum welcomes the process initiated on 9 January 2016 on constitutional reform, a response to critical political problems. While discussions on a political solution have focused on devolution and power sharing with the provinces, our statement puts forward for our fellow citizens and parliamentarians some principles and ideas that we think are fundamental to address the structural problems that have undermined the body politic of our state and society since independence, and have created an environment for conflict and tension among communities.

Sovereignty of the People, Non-Discrimination and the Concept of a Secular State

The fundamental principle is that sovereignty is in the people within a united, independent and indivisible state. If sovereignty is in the people, the rights and aspirations of all the people must be recognised, with due respect for their diverse religions, languages and ethnicities. Such a plural society will inevitably have to move towards a state which regards and treats all religions alike. The constitution will also have to reiterate that Sinhala and Tamil are both national and official languages.

Democracy and Devolution

Over the decades, authoritarianism has been on the rise, both with the state becoming repressive in the face of insurrections and armed conflict and with the increasing centralisation of state power. The current unitary structure of the state and the executive presidency have contributed to an alarmingly disproportionate centralised style of governance, abuse of executive power and violations of fundamental rights. This has also led to breakdown of law and order, and a culture of impunity for acts of gross violence and corruption. The principle of subsidiarity calls for devolving power from the centre and for people’s participation and power sharing. There should be constitutional guarantees to ensure such devolved power is not retaken by the centre, and that the criterion of use of such devolved power is, in its turn, invariably the welfare of all citizens of the devolved unit without distinction. We have witnessed how a unitary structure of the state leads to the judiciary, the bureaucracy, the economic policy makers and even our educationists working with a centralised mindset. Such a unitary worldview is hierarchical and undermines the concerns and participation of people in the peripheral regions in particular. Democratisation of state and society and sovereignty of the people require that any new constitutional proposals should abolish the executive presidency and provide for maximum devolution within the concept of a united and indivisible country.

Sustainable Development

The legacy of the social welfare state, with comparatively high human development indicators, has been undermined in recent years with neo liberal economic policies. Economic development has focused mainly on Colombo and the Western Province, and uneven development characterises the national economy. Social and economic inequalities are on the rise, with such inequalities particularly affecting the regions in the periphery including the Northern and Eastern Provinces that were most affected by the armed conflict. Therefore sustainable development policies should be implemented in the regions, to ensure that local economies and resources are also developed and benefit the people. Furthermore, there should be fair and adequate distribution of national resources to ensure such regional development. In this way the untapped human resource potential of rural youth and women can be harnessed for development. In addition, sectors like agriculture and fisheries, which are important for livelihoods at the regional level, can be developed through adequate national resources committed for such development.

Education

The gains made after independence regarding equitable access to quality education have been progressively undermined, and there has been national recognition of a continuing crisis in the education sector. This crisis is not limited to our school system and university education, but is reflected in non-formal education such as vocational training and agricultural extension. If education is to be meaningful for all the people, it has also to be accessible and relevant to problems and issues faced by people in diverse and marginalised communities. This requires reassessment and review of curricula and teaching methodologies with the participation of regional education authorities. They must be adequately resourced to meet the challenges of education reform.

Co-existence

Sri Lanka after decades of armed conflict and great inequalities has become a divided society. Ethnic and religious divisions, class differences and caste oppression in some communities continue to undermine our capacity to achieve integrated development and progress. Efforts to rebuild inter-ethnic and other social relations between communities have to begin with adequate resources allocated to the regions as well as with dismantling the structures at the centre which perpetuate racism, gender-based discrimination and other forms of social exclusion.

We ask all engaged in the current reform to reflect on and recognise the importance of integrating the above principles into the process. The Friday Forum calls on our fellow citizens and our Parliament to reflect on these principles and engage with the constitutional reform process, so that we can begin to resolve the political questions that have plagued our country since independence. The need for rejecting adversarial politics and finding common ground to forge a consensus on what is best for our common future was emphasised by the President when he addressed Parliament. This may be a last opportunity to defeat divisive and extremist forces in different parts of our country, and work towards a just society and a sustainable environment of peace, security and prosperity for all our people.

Professor Savitri Goonesekere Ahilan Kadirgamar

For and on behalf of

Mr. Tissa Jayatilaka, Ms. Suriya Wickremasinghe, Mr. Faiz-ur Rahman, Mr. Priyantha Gamage, Prof. Camena Guneratne, Mr. S.C.C.Elankovan, Prof. Ranjini Obeyesekere, Dr. A. C Visvalingam, Ms. Shanthi Dias, Ms. Manouri Muttetuwegama, Bishop Duleep de Chickera, Dr. Selvy Thiruchandran, Prof. Arjuna Aluwihare, Mr. Danesh Casie-Chetty, Dr. Upatissa Pethiyagoda, Mr. Pulasthi Hewamanna, Rev. Dr. Jayasiri Peiris, D Wijayanandana & Mr. Chandra Jayaratne.