“National Policy on Reconciliation”

Following are excerpts from the first draft of the“national Policy on Reconciliation”

Thegoal

Harmony and reconciliation for sustainable peace and prosperity through improved inter-communal relationships based on trust, equality, confidence and mutual benefit

Thestrategy A.recoveryandequitable

development

The State shall work towards inculcating a culture where each citizen becomes an active participant in society and feels a sense of belonging and of being Sri Lankan. To this end, the State shall make every effort to identify and address the social, economic and political structures which caused dissension between communities. The Government shall undertake an indepth study to identify the needs of the people in the North and East to address the question of improving their livelihoods The Government will commit to making every effort to ensure equitable resource allocation and development of villages, bearing in mind that the reverse could lead to frustration and communal tension in clusters of villages dominated by different ethnic communities, particularly in the Eastern province. The Government will make every effort to ensure that all future development activities are carried out in consultation and with the participation of the local people so as to build ownership to the development activities, as well as give them a sense of participation in nation building. Cognizant of the sense of marginalization expressed by Tamil people due to longstanding language policies, and deficiencies in the implementation thus far of changes, and further being sensitive to the perception prevailing among the Tamil people of being second class citizens, the Government shall adopt urgent measures to ensure that the current language policy is satisfactorily implemented, and developed to promote equity as well as mutual understanding. Measures shall be taken to take further current measures for recruitment of Tamil speaking police officers, Recruitment to the police and armed services of Tamils and Tamil speaking citizens, with particular attention to officer cadres, should be fast forwarded. Recognizing that an independent permanent Police Commission is a pre-requisite to guarantee the effective functioning of the Police and to generate public confidence, the Government shall make every effort to empower such a Police Commission to monitor the performance of the Police Service and ensure that all police officers act independently and maintain a high degree of professional conduct. This will also increase the confidence of the minorities in the impartiality of the Police. Police training shall be given the highest priority, with a change of culture required to emphasize the legal and moral responsibilities of the force and its accountability to citizens. The Government will make every effort to promote professional skills training and activities that bring about the necessary attitudinal changes in the public service. Public servants should be guided by criteria, norms and conduct sensitized to the concerns and apprehensions of all citizens, particularly the minorities. Bearing in mind the significant lapse of time since the introduction of standardisation as a means of affirmative action by the State to mitigate the imbalance in educational opportunities afforded to different communities, the State shall in the best interests of future generations undertake a careful review of this quota system and work towards the introduction of a merit based admissions system. The Government shall pursue actively a programme of equitable distribution of educational facilities and make a concerted effort to minimize any feeling of discrimination felt by the minorities. Further, the Government shall make every effort to ensure that the inequality in the availability of educational facilities in different areas of the country is reduced and eventually eliminated. The Government strongly discourages disqualifying students on ethnic or religious grounds, in respect of admission to schools, as being a significant impediment to reconciliation. The Government strongly declares its commitment to developing a pro-active policy to encourage mixed schools serving children from different ethnic and religious backgrounds. Such a policy will be implemented so as to facilitate the admission of children from different ethnic and religious groups to these schools. Government shall ensure the return to their original places of inhabitation of all those displaced, Tamil and Muslim and Sinhala, and shall promote living conditions, including access to educational and health and transport facilities, in advance of those available previously. Government shall fast forward the process of ensuring title for such returnees. Where such return is not possible, for reasons based on clearly enunciated national policies, equivalent lands in nearby areas should be provided with appropriate title deeds and facilities. The Government shall in particular facilitate the early return of the displaced Muslims to their places of origin in the Northern Province. Closely associated would be immediate steps to assist in re-building of the mosques, houses and schools destroyed or damaged by the LTTE. It is recognized that all victims of the con- Justice and Truth and Understanding The Government shall make every effort to give full effect to the Interim and Final Recommendations of the LLRC so as to maintain the confidence of the people in the reconciliation process. flict merit compensation, but provision of this through financial grants may not be possible, given practical limitations on state funds. Instead the needs of victims may be addressed through preferential policies, which may include scholarships, loans on easy payment, etc

B.political Participation and Administrative Accountability

The Constitution shall be amended to provide for a Second Chamber of Parliament based on the principle of equal representation for all Provinces. Legislation in particular areas should require the consent of two thirds of the Senate in addition to two thirds of the First Chamber, to facilitate a check on legislation that might seem majoritarian in intent. Ordinary legislation shall require to be passed in the Second Chamber too, with provision for joint sessions to resolve any dispute after the passing of a prescribed period. Recognizing that the current time frame provided in the Constitution of Sri Lanka for canvassing constitutionality of proposed legislation before the Supreme Court is grossly inadequate, and further recognizing that public intervention regarding proposed legislation is an integral part of a vibrant democracy, the Government shall make endeavours to reach a consensus on an appropriate constitutional amendment, to provide for an adequate time frame to challenge proposed legislation. Post-enactment judicial review for a prescribed period of time after the passing of legislation shall also be made possible, to ensure conformity with the Constitution and its provisions regarding Rights

Discussions with a prescribed time frame shall be held to remove current ambiguities with regard to the Concurrent List as provided for in the current Constitution. It should be reduced as much as possible, with most functions being allocated to the Province or to smaller units with close systems of public accountability. Provision should be made for working according to National Policy in some particulars, and in others according to Provincial Policy. Where concurrence seems essential, there should be clear mechanisms for resolving disputes based on consultation. Financial provision should be clearly made for Provincial authorities by the Centre, and for local authorities by the Province, with autonomy as to usage subject to established guidelines. In order to ensure that there is no political interference in the public service and that recruitment and promotions in the public service are in conformity with the equality provisions in the Constitution, the Government shall work towards the establishment of an Independent Public Service Commission without delay. Measures shall also be taken to ensure the independence of the judiciary and the police with regard to the appointment process as well as in their functioning Efforts should be made to make the public service and the police inclusive of all communities with special attention to ensuring adequate representation of the population in any area. Though this should not take away from the principle of merit based recruitment and promotion, positive discrimination may be necessary for a limited period to restore the balance with regard to services where currently such balance is lacking Ensuring at least bilingualism in the public service and other professions serving the public should be ensured, whilst nationally the culture of trilingualism should be fostered by making passes in any two of the National Languages compulsory, along with Mathematics, at the GCE Ordinary Level Examination C. Justice and Truth and Understanding The Government shall make every effort to give full effect to the Interim and Final Recommendations of the LLRC so as to maintain the confidence of the people in the reconciliation process. The Government shall work comprehensively and cohesively to implement the National Action Plan on Human Rights that has been adopted by Cabinet, with particular attention to improving the capacities of and faith in the police, to ensuring better protection mechanisms for women and children, and to streamlining the judicial system to promote confidence in its operations and a reduction of rote remanding. The State shall put in place mechanisms that facilitate the acknowledgement of losses and suffering on all sides, accompanied by expressions of empathy and solidarity. Examples of specific mechanisms include recording of all losses, with provision for the issuing of certificates and the bestowal of compensation as appropriate. Declaring that the process of reconciliation requires a full acknowledgement of the tragedy of the conflict and a collective act of contrition by the political leaders and civil society, of both Sinhala and Tamil communities, and that reconciliation can take root only if there is forgiveness and compassion, the Government calls on leaders on all sides to reach out to each other in humility and make a joint declaration, extending an apology to innocent citizens who fell victim to the conflict. Additionally, the State makes a special call to the religious leaders of all communities and civil society to work towards reconciliation, bearing in mind the healing impact such interventions could have. Acknowledging the need for the nation to collectively empathize with all victims of the conflict, whether civilian or soldiers, or whether they belong to Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim or other communities, the State should set apart a separate event on Independence Day to express solidarity and empathy with all victims of the tragic conflict and to pledge a collective commitment to ensure that there is no return or relapse to such atrocities ever again. Recognizing that the ensuing minority grievances stem from deficiencies in the system of administration and lack of good governance that affect all citizens regadless of ethnicity, will ensure that every citizen who has a grievance out of any executive or administrative act, particularly those based on ethnicity or religion, should have the right to seek redress before an independent institution.

Dimplementation

A multi-stakeholder institutional mechanism shall be established to promote and monitor the reconciliation process. The work of this mechanism shall be reviewed by a Parliamentary Select Committee. The mechanism shall cease to exist at the end of three years unless Parliament decides to extend its function.