U.S. slams change

11 September 2010 03:16 pm Views - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}} 47 Bookmark

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The United States today condemned Sri Lanka's passage of a constitutional amendment granting the president vast new powers, saying it undermined democracy.

The parliament on Wednesday voted for the measure sought by President Mahinda Rajapaksa, which removes a presidential two-term limit and grants him more power over appointments to the police, judiciary, public service and electoral commissions.

"The United States is concerned that this constitutional amendment weakens checks and balances and thus undermines the principles of constitutional democracy," State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said in a statement.

Crowley called on Rajapaksa's government to take steps to strengthen independent institutions, increase transparency and promote national reconciliation.

The government argued the constitutional change was justified to give Rajapaksa, whose second term ends in 2017, time to build Sri Lanka's $42 billion economy after victory over the Tamil Tiger separatists last year.

Opposition and rights groups criticized the measure as a blow to democracy and a step toward dictatorship by Rajapaksa, who parlayed last year's victory over the rebels into a re-election to a second term in January and a landslide for his United Peoples Freedom Alliance party in parliament in April.

However, critics accuse him of stifling dissent, jailing opponents and disregarding the rule of law as he holds an office with almost unchecked control of the government. Reuters