Karu supports 22nd Amendment and calls on Parliament to pass it unanimously

The 22nd Amendment to the Constitution is a step forward for the future benefit of the country, Karu Jayasuriya, the Chairman of the National Movement for a Just Society, said.He said that it is the responsibility of the people’s representatives to ensure it is adopted unanimously.

“We highly appreciate the submission of the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution to the Parliament which will revoke the 20th Amendment, which paved the way for a dictatorial government by severely distorting the democratic governance traditions of Sri Lanka. We consider it as a positive step taken to update the 19th Amendment to the Constitution,” he said.

Given below are excerpts of the statement. “It also must be noted that the step to be taken on September 6 to do away with the attempts to retain a number of crucial powers of the Executive Presidency, as included in the previous draft, will be commended by all who value democracy. As the National Movement for Social Justice, we express our gratitude to the Honourable President, the Minister of Justice and the Government for standing up for such democratic reforms.

“It is our expectation that when the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution is debated, in Parliament, on September 6, all the members of Parliament will stand on the side of the people. We also hope that the amendment can be adopted unanimously, after the debate on it.

“The foremost responsibility of the people’s representatives, in this country, is to create a country where future generations can live happily by working to ensure democracy and the betterment of the people. In order to fulfil that responsibility, we must focus our attention on the political and economic reforms that must be carried out. This is why we had to fight against the 20th Amendment to the Constitution brought by the previous government and struggle to have it withdrawn. That is why we continue to advocate for social and political transformations, including economic reforms that should be carried out for the good of the country.

“At the same time, the other important point that we emphasise is that although the government is working towards admirable political changes, such as the introduction of the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, which is praised, not only by Sri Lankan’s respecting democratic values, but also the civilised world, we, as an organisation, do not agree with certain measures taken by the government through the use of Emergency powers.

We do not condone the harassment of trade union leaders and activists of the peaceful struggle who have made great sacrifices for democracy, under any circumstance. We are greatly saddened by these incidents. We are also deeply concerned about reports of what could be considered as abductions. Such events cause both national and internationally negative effects on the country. We, therefore, believe that the honourable President must pay personal attention to these matters.”