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by Ajith Samaranayake

The political pundits appeared to be dazed by what the media in a reflex action has dubbed the 'Constitutional Crisis' but to any realistic observer it was apparent that this condition was festering for the past two years.

When Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's UNF Government came to office in December 2001, it was hailed by the more optimistic analyists as a challenge and 'cohabitation' became the parrot cry of the day. But this cohabitation between a President belonging to one political party and a Cabinet of Ministers belonging to another political party (over which moreover she was required to preside) was at best an uneasy arrangement. The sharp political divisions which had preceded that general election ensured that the two parties would enter into that arrangement with the conflicts created by that election embedded in their minds.

This was no recipe for cohabitation and unfolding events proved this correct. The most significant act of the Government was to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding with the LTTE which led to a cessation of hostilities between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan Armed Forces. While this was hailed with relief by a war-weary nation it was viewed with distrust by President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga who clearly had not forgotten that both the LTTE and the UNP had rejected her proposals for wide ranging devolution of powers to the Northern and Eastern provinces.

The Government however gathered considerable international support for its campaign and was able to go ahead with several rounds of talks with the LTTE in various international cities during the course of which hopes were raised that the LTTE would agree to a federal solution to the ethnic problem.

However there were rumbles from disquietened sections about the LTTE's alleged violations of the MoU, its continuing conscription of children and shipment of arms, to which the President pointedly drew the Government's attention. While the Government was considered in some quarters as giving too many concessions to the LTTE, the LTTE itself was caught in a bind. It could not be viewed in the eyes of its cadres as having given up its struggle in which considerable sacrifices had been invested while it was also confronted with the problem of transforming itself from a military machine into a political entity. This was perhaps what prompted it to take up a bravura stance and call off its talks with the Government.

From here events unfolded rapidly. After a flurry of visits to France, Northern Ireland and other such destinations the LTTE unveiled its plan for what it titled an Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA), which was perceived to be a position from which it would not withdraw. For its part the Government too saw this as going quite contrary to its own position but said it was ready to begin negotiations on the basis of the LTTE's proposals. However the proposals were indignantly rejected by wide sections of Sinhala and Muslim opinion and the Maha Sangha.

The Present crisis really came to a head with the President seeking the opinion of the Supreme Court on the propriety of certain actions of the then Defence Minister Tilak Marapona, the Supreme Court upholding the President's supremacy in the defence sphere and the Government's move to impeach the Chief Justice. The result was the President proroguing Parliament and taking the portfolios of Defence, Interior and Media under her wing.

While the President has taken up the position that her actions were well within her constitutional rights and that the peace process was free to go forward, the Government contends that without the three portfolios it would find it difficult to continue with the peace process. The LTTE for the moment remains silent while the Norwegian luminaries are flapping their wings in the background. The Prime Minister and the President met for the first time on Wednesday for what the joint press communique described as cordial talks and the two leaders would meet again next week by which time Parliament too would be in session. For the time being it looks like a draw.

While the two contending parties have to be congratulated for the restraint, which they have shown in, what could have well turned out to be a nasty situation, what the present situation has brought to light is a contradiction at the very heart of the constitution. For the first time since it was introduced the constitution faces its severest test. Two poles of authority are locked in a combat for supremacy.

While the President is the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and has the right under the constitution to remove any Cabinet Minister, it is the Government, which commands a majority in Parliament. However the President is also the Chief of the Cabinet and a more optimistic reading of the current situation would be that the President who so far did not hold any Cabinet office can now be fully integrated into the Cabinet in her own right so that she too would be responsible for decision making. The Government however is clearly uneasy with this arrangement but barring another general election there seems to be no other alternative.

The crux of the problem appears to be the peace process. While the President says that there will not be any obstruction to the peace the Prime Minister has taken up the position that she will have to take charge of the peace process since he feels that she has jeopardised it by her recent actions. The crucial question is how the LTTE will view the situation. Will they be happier negotiating with Prime Minister Wickremesinghe or President Kumaratunga?

This is where the President's call for a broad national alliance or a National Government comes in. While it is to be seen how things will develop in the coming days the announcement is the joint communique that the two leaders had decided to move forward and continue the dialogue with all parties concerned at least holds out hope that some kind of reconciliation based on abroad national consensus would still be possible.

With the President and the Prime Minister deciding to continue their talks next week and with Parliament meeting the same week there is still hope that the situation could be defused. So the question before the two contending major political parties or to use the phraseology of Dr. Jayadewa Uyangoda "the two parties of the Sri Lanka bourgeoisie" is whether they will close ranks in the national interest and offer a viable solution to the Tamil people or allow the country to go down the Gadareue slope.

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