^{File Photograph : Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa}

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa stated that he will be removing the 19^th amendment, which currently limits presidential power, during his inaugural speech to the 9^th Parliament on Thursday.   

Rajapaksa referenced the overwhelming two-thirds majority won by the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) as a mandate from the people to permit him to pass majoritarian policies and amend the constitution in ways that will uphold and extend the power of the Rajapaksa regime.

“As the people have given us the mandate we wanted for a constitutional amendment, our first task will be to remove the 19th Amendment to the Constitution. After that, all of us will get together to formulate a new constitution suitable for the country,” he said.

Rajapaksa called for the protection of Buddhism under the constitution, reinforcing the Sinhala nationalist motivations of the current government.

“As representatives of the people, we always respect the aspirations of the majority,” he said during his speech.

He has already set up Presidential Task Forces (PTF) to “protect places of archeological importance and to preserve our Buddhist heritage.” He has come under fire from multiple human rights organisations and local residents for promoting Sinhalisation in the North-East through the means of the PTF’s.  

“While ensuring priority for Buddhism, it is now clear to the people that freedom of any citizen to practice the religion of his or her choice is better secured,” he stressed.

Land Disputes

Sri Lankan army block Mullaitivu farmers from accessing their land

Despite multiple incidents and protests in the North-East against the Sri Lankan military occupation of Tamil-owned land, the Sri Lankan president was adamant that he was committed to solving land disputes across the island.

“There are people who do not possess proper deeds for the lands on which they have lived for many years. We will provide them with legitimate deeds utilizing a swift and due process. I assure you that without a proper alternative we will not evict people from their ancestral homes or farmlands,” he said.

Employment Opportunities

Rajapaksa also promised to provide mass employment opportunities. “We have already commenced a programme to provide employment for 100,000 persons representing the most underprivileged families in the country. Simultaneously, we have set plans in motion to provide job opportunities to 50,000 graduates and train them to render their services efficiently,” he said.

However, the Sri Lankan Home Affairs Ministry passed an order on Wednesday suggesting that the Northern and Eastern provinces were rescinded from the scheme for the employment opportunities.

Fraud and Corruption Zero-Tolerance

Accused war criminal appointed to Sri Lankan Sports Council

Even though Rajapaksa and many top officials in his administration have been accused of war crimes, he claimed that “we will take steps to completely eradicate waste and corruption in all the Ministries and institutions. In future I will not hesitate to enforce the law against those who are involved in fraud and corrupt actions, irrespective of the status of any such perpetrators.”

However, Sri Lankan army commander and accused war criminal, Shavendra Silva, was appointed to the National Sports Council last week and has also been appointed as the head of the island’s coronavirus task force.

See the full text of the speech here.