External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj’s visit to Sri Lanka last week has brought to the fore the question of whether and to what extent India should be involved in the neighbouring country’s ongoing constitutional reform process.
Ever since India and Sri Lanka signed the 1987 Accord, New Delhi has been stating that the 13th Amendment, an outcome of the Accord, should be implemented fully. The Amendment, despite weaknesses, paved the way for the establishment of Provincial Councils all over the country.
Ahilan Kadirgamar, political economist based in Jaffna, argues that India should not confine itself to a full implementation of the 13th Amendment but should do everything needed to help Sri Lanka draft a new Constitution. Being one of the major players involved in Sri Lanka for many decades, India’s support would send a strong signal about the significance it attaches to the process.
He adds that constitutional reforms, if successfully carried out, can neutralise extremist elements at both ends of the political spectrum.
However, A.H.M. Fowzie, the senior vice-president of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and State Minister of National Integration and Reconciliation, feels it is not for India to get involved in the Constitution making process.
A senior member of the United National Party, who doesn’t want to be named, also says it is also in the interests of India to let things resolved by Sri Lankans themselves.
K. Godage, a former diplomat, believes that while India should adopt a “hands-off” approach, Sri Lanka should assure its neighbour through an agreement that it will not do anything to endanger India’s security.
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