report in The Morning, Feb 9 , 2023
Despite a Court injunction preventing protests near the entrance to Parliament, a section of the Buddhist clergy marched towards the Parliament entrance yesterday (8) during President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s throne speech and Statement of Government Policy following the inauguration of the fourth session of the ninth Parliament, protesting against the full implementation of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.
However, the Police placed barricades to block the protestors, but unlike in previous protests and processions staged near the Parliament vicinity, there was no usage of tear gas or water cannons. Hundreds of Buddhist monks gathered near the Parliament to burn a copy of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution by stating that they would not permit the implementation of Police and land powers through the said Amendment.
Ven. Balangoda Kassapa Thera and another individual named Kamantha Thushara were placed under arrest by the Police during the protest.
While addressing the protest, Ven. Prof. Omalpe Sobitha Thera said that the stance taken to fully implement the 13th Amendment to the Constitution is an effort to obtain some 300,000 votes from the Northern Province. “Northern people do not ask for Police or land powers. They ask for the right to live. This is similar to what the Southern people have asked. They are demanding education and health related facilities. There has been a peaceful environment between the communities. Wickremesinghe is creating a conspiracy to destroy that environment and to gain political power. We request everyone in Parliament not to be fooled by this conspiracy. Activist Arun Siddharthan said that we do not want Provincial Councils and Police or land powers but to live in a peaceful environment. This is the opinion of the people in the country including the majority of the Tamil people,” he claimed.
Ven. Prof. Medagoda Abhayatissa Thera said that 6.9 million people cast their votes to take this country forward with a new Constitution without the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. “They did not cast their votes to implement the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. The President should go for an election again. If he can come to power by securing the people’s mandate, he can implement the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. He should also include it to his election manifesto that he is obtaining the people’s mandate to implement the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. We strongly urge the 225 Parliamentarians not to allow the damage to be done,” he added.
Meanwhile, addressing the media following the Parliament session, Thamil Makkal Thesiya Kuttani Leader and Jaffna District MP C.V. Wigneswaran said: “We are for the implementation of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution but it is not a solution to our problem. As a former Provincial Chief Minister of the North, I was not able to deliver properly under a unitary setup. The Central Government did not allow us to work. Therefore, we are urging for a federal setup.” While commenting on the Buddhist clergy’s protest, he said: “The monks should not interfere. They know nothing. They think that only they know to rule the country. I will be writing an open letter to the prelates in the upcoming days.”
https://www.themorning.lk/articles/R5foWc7cRrl2vX3AyzL5
