13 Federalists and 5 Eelamists/Separatists selected/appointed for Committee to Draft Federal Constitution to Sri Lanka

Pro-minority and federal mid-set government lead by Ranil and Sirisena launched a new process to draw up a new constitution to divide the country to pieces by forming numbers of Federal states aimed at preventing so called ethnic issue which is in fact a Tamil terrorism.

Parliamentary speaker Karu Jayasuriya opened a constitutional assembly, seeking public views on reforming the charter, seven years after the end of the separatist war in May 2009.

The assembly includes a 21-member steering committee headed by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to draft the new charter aimed at forming so called Federal state which rejected by majority Sinhala people. Twenty other members of the committee are;

MPs Lakshman Kiriella (Federalist),

Nimal Siripala de Silva (Federalist),

Rauff Hakim (Separatist),

Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe (Federalist),

Susil Premaratne (Federalist),

Rishad Bathiudeen (Separatis)),

Patali Champika Ranawaka (Federalist),

D.M. Swaminanathan (Federalist),

Mano Ganeshan (Separatist),

Malik Samarawickrama (Federalist),

R. Sampanthan (Eelamist),

Anura Kumara Dissanayake (Federalist),

Dilan Perera(Federalist),

Dinesh Gunawardena (Nationalist) ,

Jayampathi Wickremaratne (Federalist),

M. A. Sumanthiran (Eelamist),

Dr Thusitha Wijemanne (Federalist),

Bimal Ratnayake(Federalist),

Prasanna Ranatunga (Nationalist), and

Douglas Devananda(Federalist).

Leader of the House Minister Lakshman Kiriella proposed the names of seven MPs for the posts of deputy chairmen and the names were seconded by TNA MP Sumanthiran. The seven deputy chairmen of the assembly are Deputy Speaker Thilanga Sumathipala (Federalist), Deputy Chairman of Committees Selvam Adaikkilanathan (Eelamist), Ministers Kabir Hahsim (Federalist), Dr. Sudarshani Fernandopulle (Federalist), MPs Tilak Marapana(Federalist), Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena (Federalist)and Dr Nalinda Jayatissa (Federalist). No any Nationalist MPs had been appointed for this posts.

None of the JVP MPs were present in the Chamber when the Constitutional Assembly met.

Although no timeframe was given Tuesday for finalising a draft, political sources said the process could take years.

Wickremesinghe has pledged to UN and US to devolve more political powers to Tamils and reduce the military presence in the former war zone in the island’s north. Ranil further has also promised action against the military for alleged war crimes committed in the final phase of the 37-year conflict that ended in 2009.

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