JSA convenes special meeting to address criticisms of Judicial System

Colombo, June 29 (Daily Mirror) - The Judicial Service Association of Sri Lanka (JSASL), the organization representing all the District Court Judges and Magistrates in the country, has decided to call a Special General Meeting tomorrow (30) to discuss unwarranted criticisms directed at the judicial system, the Daily Mirror learns.

It is learnt that this meeting will be held tomorrow in Colombo to discuss the negative impacts of malicious statements against judicial decisions, judges and related issues, following the requests of its members.

The JSASL has called this meeting in light of the speeches made by the Minister of Justice and several other Members of Parliament on l9 June 2024 during a parliamentary debate.

Furthermore, Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe had formally requested the Speaker to summon key officials of the  JSA to the Powers and Privileges Committee of Parliament. This request came in response to a statement issued by the JSA, which the Minister alleges has infringed upon his parliamentary privileges.   

In a statement, the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) had observed that Members of Parliament should not interfere with the functions of the judiciary or the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) by making statements under the protection of Parliamentary Privileges.

The Lawyers’ Collective, a prominent legal advocacy group in Sri Lanka also maintained that that any allegation against the judiciary must be made in the form of a formal complaint before the appropriate forum and not by way of a statement in the Parliament under the cover of Parliamentary privilege.