Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said on Friday (Mar 3) the possibility of a ‘hybrid court’, saying it was not politically feasible.
‘Truth and Reconciliation Commission’ as the best option to deal with post war issues of the country, he proposed instead.
Addressing the ceremonial inauguration of “National Law Week 2017” at the auditorium of Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL), the premier observed that the establishment of a ‘hybrid supreme court’ may require a referendum.
“The European Union (EU) itself knows the dangers of a referendum,” the Premier added referring to the much talked-about EU referendum which paved way for Brexit.
“We will have to seriously rethink it. If the court rules that we must go for a referendum we will end up in serious trouble. Hybrid court is surely not something we can campaign for. It is certainly not practical. We are now looking at a new mechanism. The Office of Missing Persons (OMP) has already been set up and a Special Counsel to be appointed. We are now considering a TRC which I think can resolve many issues. The South African experience, the strengths and weaknesses of that process, will be studied. Generally all parties are in agreement with it in principle,” he pointed out.
The Prime Minister pointed out the TRC would be a cornerstone of achieving reconciliation, but at the same time stressed that a basic agreement on new Constitution is needed for the setting up of TRC. He pointed out the extremists in both sides of divide would reject the TRC, adding that the Centre would have to deal with that.
“Any criminal procedure cannot be long drawn. It has to be fast. We have fought too long. We have to find a quick way to compensate for those suffered and met with injustice. We have to address the issue of missing persons” he commented.
