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| Tuesday, 4 May 2004 |
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| Constitutional reforms process gains momentum The Constitutional reforms process gained momentum yesterday with the appointment of eminent constitutional lawyer Dr. Jayampathy Wickrararatne as a senior advisor to the Ministry of Constitutional Reform, by President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, who is also the Minister of Constitutional Reform. Media Advisor to the Ministry of Constitutional Reforms Chandraratne Bandara said the President has made key appointments that underscore the UPFA Government's commitment to constitutional reform and the peace process. The Ministry is expected to play an important supporting role in the peace process. The President has appointed Dr. Jayampathy Wickramaratne, President's Counsel as Senior Advisor to the Ministry of Constitutional Reform. He was Consultant to the Ministry of Justice, Constitutional Affairs, Ethnic Affairs and National Integration under the PA Government and was a member of the Drafting Committee that drafted the Constitutional Proposals of 1997 and the Constitution of the Republic of Sri Lanka Bill of 2000. He has studied the constitutional provisions relating to devolution in several countries and attended international conferences on constitutional law. Dr. Wickramaratne has served as a UNDP Consultant on international law in Laos. Prof. Ranjith Amarasinghe, Professor of Political Science at the University of Peradeniya has been appointed as a Consultant to the Ministry. Professor Amarasinghe specialises in devolution and constitutional matters and has been active in popularising the cause of devolution. Prof. Laksiri Fernando of the Department of Political Science and Public Policy of the University of Colombo would be taking over as the Director of the NORAD-funded Peace Building Project of the Ministry. Prof. Fernando served as Director, Diplomacy Training Institute and Visiting Fellow in the Faculty of Law at the University of New South Wales. He has done research on election systems and edited a book titled A New Electoral System for Sri Lanka. Earlier, President Kumaratunga appointed Mrs. Malkanthi Wickremasinghe, Additional Legal Draftsman as the Secretary of the Ministry of Constitutional Reform. Foreign Affairs Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar P.C., chairs the Advisory Committee on Constitutional Reform appointed by the President. The other members are R.K.W. Goonesekera, a senior lawyer and legal academic, Nihal Jayamanne P.C., K. Balapatabendi P.C., M.M. Zuhair P.C., Dr. Jayampathy Wickramaratne P.C., Prof. Lakshman Marasinghe, Professor Emeritus, University of Windsor, Canada, Prof. Ranjith Amarasinghe, Prof. Laksiri Fernando and Nigel Hatch and Dr. Sivaji Felix, Attorneys-at-Law. Ministry sources stated that a Consultative Committee consisting of academics, professionals, media persons and artists committed to the peace process and constitutional reform would also be set up. A similar committee was set up under the PA administration and its members actively participated in popularising proposals for constitutional reform. |
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