Legal foundation laid for Port City

The Government this week rammed through Parliament the Port City Commission Bill. What the indecent hurry was begs questioning when the groundwork for the project was still ‘ work in progress’, and some distance from completion.

That the Chinese who are overseeing the mega project were applying pressure to fast-track the legal framework in return for the multitude of loans, grants and currency swaps this Government was chasing behind, has not been denied.

The Supreme Court's determination over the constitutionality of the Bill was received by a large many as a pleasant surprise. Why there were doubts or concerns over the way the country's highest court would act is a moot point. The court found certain provisions of the Bill so horrendous that it required not just a special two- thirds majority of Parliament to ensure its passage, but even a Referendum of the People. But they also showed a way out for the Government.

How the Attorney General gave his certification for the constitutionality of this Bill in the face of such strictures raises a huge credibility issue for the AG’s Department. It was not long ago that the AG held a fund- raiser for the Easter Sunday victims. Unprecedented as it was, the AG accepted a multi-million cheque from the Chinese construction company involved in the Port City. This was a huge mistake. Not only that, the Justices of the country's Appellate Courts were also invited, though wiser counsel prevailed on the part of the learned judges not to accept the invitation and compromise themselves in the process.

While the Bill was being debated in Parliament, the Chinese embassy funded and participated in the opening of a ‘ Smart Library’ for the AG's Department. Interestingly, our page 04 news item refers to the faux pas over the lettering on the plaque. Public perceptions of impartiality have been thrown to the winds.

Chinese companies involved in the Port City project have no inhibitions in pushing their agenda --- by hook or by crook. Take this very Bill. Originally drafted by a former Attorney General, his draft was given to the Prime Minister of the former Government, and to the incumbent PM. The draft then went to the Presidential Secretariat. It was handed over to a lawyer who was a consultant to the Chinese project company. What more Conflict of Interest, one may ask.

The Supreme Court put its foot down on some fundamental provisions of the Bill the Government then presented. Some of the areas, they found, went to the root of the Constitution. These revolved, inter- alia, around Parliamentary control of the new zone; the need for the existing regulatory authorities like the Central Bank to continue their oversight; and the need to protect local manufacturers.

There have been huge gaps in legislative drafting where Parliament amends Bills ' on its feet' often defeating a Court's determinations. The 19th Amendment passed by the former Government was a textbook case where the Minister moving the Bill was moving amendments different to what was being sent from the Officials Box. The mess had to be cleared even after the Speaker gave his assent to the Bill, but it never goes back to the Court for its okay.

Constitutionality aside, it was pathetic to see the Left parties -- the Communist Party and the proud old LSSP -- cave in so meekly to justify this ultra- capitalist or what is now called neo-liberal economic venture. Probably because they are mooted by the Chinese 'Communist' Party or part of this Government and have to sing for their supper. One can imagine their stance, had this very exercise been pushed by the Americans and they were in opposition.

So, Sri Lanka now has a Port City or Economic or Financial Zone. It is a typical Catch- 22 situation for the Government. If they do not liberalise the regulatory laws it will inhibit ' the Robber Barons' showing interest in the Zone. If they do, the country becomes a haven for money laundering and all the dubious international financial criminal activity.

Dubai and Singapore are not entirely Financial Centres. They are trading posts that have no other means of sustenance, so they thrive on parking "investments" of crooked politicians, businessmen and now even some cricketers from Africa and Asia. For the Government, it will be a case of bhanda beray gahanna wei -- ‘ now beat the drum you have tied onto yourself ’, and hope that this ambitious Port City will not end up a ghost city or a Chinese enclave on India’s under-belly.