Cabinet resolves to take package to Parliament

[TamilNet, Monday, 31 July 2000, 12:53 GMT]
The Sri Lankan cabinet resolved unanimously Monday to table the government's constitutional reform proposals in Parliament this week. The speaker of the Sri Lankan Parliament has been informed to summon a emergency Parliamentary meeting on 3 August for the purpose government, sources said. The debate on the draft bill containing the constitutional reforms will begin on August 8, according a cabinet spokesman.

Sources said that the proposed reforms are to be introduced as an urgent draft bill in the national interest. Sri Lanka's main opposition party said that it will not support the reforms as they are going to be rushed just before the dissolution of the Parliament which is due later this month.

Leftist parties and the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, major constituents of the People's Alliance, have urged the government to take the constitutional reform proposals to Parliament, ignoring the opposition of the United National party, the votes of which are crucial to securing the support two third of all the members of Parliament.

Obtaining two third of the votes in Parliament which is 150 will not be an easy task unless there is mass desertion from the ranks of the UNP, analysts in Colombo said.