Increasing youth quota in Parliament Reviving Sri Lanka’s ailing political culture with young blood

 At present, the core of the ongoing people’s protests has been formed by the youth

• Many of today’s politicians have taken to politics in their youth
• After ‘88/89 most political parties were based on one leader and this affected the culture as well
• On May 27, 2022, a gazette notification was issued on a private member bill that proposed to make it mandatory to allocate a 25% quota for youth to join politics
• As per the bill individuals below the age of the 35 will be considered youth

 Sri Lanka’s parliament comprises a majority of politicians above the age of 35. Youth engagement in politics has been discouraged to a greater extent due to factors such as nepotism and wealth; thereby allowing relatives and close associates of politicians to enter politics. Even though a youth quota was introduced back in 1990- which made it mandatory to include youth in nomination lists- this was scrapped following the 88/89 insurrections. At present, the core of the ongoing people’s protests has been formed by the youth and they are determined to increase youth participation in politics for the betterment of the country and its people. 

But on the other hand, whether the youth have been actively engaged also remains a question. Where we went wrong was when politics became a job for some. During the previous local government election many youth who contested were associates or relatives of politicians. Many believe that like becoming a doctor, engineer etc. having a ministerial post or seat in Parliament is hereditary”
-  Former Elections Commissioner
Mahinda Deshapriya

Youth vs. Adult Youth

Even though there are various definitions for youth, in politics it is usually those below the age of 35. But in today’s parliament there are only around 5-7 national level youth politicians and out of them only a few have stolen the limelight. “We need ‘adult youth’ in politics and it’s not the youth that is defined in a birth certificate,” opined former Elections Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya during a zoom discussion organised by ‘Youth to Lead’, a pressure group initiated back in 2017 to address youth political participation and youth political rights. The discussion shed light on why youth should be involved in politics. 
“If we take the May 9 attacks, the majority of those engaged in counter-violence were those who have left school early. They’re aggressive. Therefore it’s not only about the age. These youth should have a thirst for knowledge while following moral values in society,” Deshapriya continued.

The struggle to introduce the youth quota 

Many of today’s politicians have taken to politics in their youth. “Some also joined leftist movements. Back in the day, those in elite families were able to join politics. People like Dr. Colvin R De Silva came through youth movements. However, those who won continued to contest from the same ward and ended up with elderly and adults. Two issues that had to be addressed following the 1971 insurrection were youth employment and ownership of lands. But youth representation in politics wasn’t addressed. From 1981 to 1983 there were armed riots and through a referendum in 1982 the election was postponed. If this election wasn’t postponed, we would have witnessed a youth representation in Parliament. In 1988/1989 a committee headed by the late Lakshman Jayatilleke decided that 40% youth between 18-25 should definitely be included in the nomination paper. Subsequently the youth quota was introduced by an amendment to the Local Authorities Elections (Amendment) Act No. 25 of 1990.  This is where the youth quota became mandatory. This was active during 1991, 1997, 2006 and 2011. In 2012 the Amendment No. 22/2012 (Mixed Member Representative System) was introduced. Here the youth quota was reduced from 40% to 20% and the word shall was changed to may; thereby not making it mandatory to have a youth quota. Even though we debated one reason we couldn’t revoke it because it was based on the fact that nominations would be rejected. If youth were given a quota from the nomination list some will lose. Therefore they decided to go without a quota,” explained Deshapriya. 

He further said that after having discussions with youth and political parties a draft of the amended act was presented in Parliament in 2017. “This included a 30% compulsory youth quota and it even got approval from the Supreme Court. But when the Act was passed in Parliament this section was removed based on the fact that nomination papers get rejected due to the compulsory quota. But on the other hand, whether the youth have been actively engaged also remains a question. Where we went wrong was when politics became a job for some. During the previous local government election many youth who contested were associates or relatives of politicians. Many believe that like becoming a doctor, engineer etc. having a ministerial post or seat in Parliament is hereditary. In order to get out of this mentality we need to instill internal democracy within political parties. But unfortunately, none of them has internal democracy. I believe that if a politician’s relative is contesting for the parliament he or she should have at least contested at the local government election,” opined Deshapriya. 

Sri Lanka’s vote-buying culture 

“If the youth want to win an election he or she has to be capable and talented,” Deshapriya added. “Today there are around 6-7 MPs below the age of 35. But other than Namal Rajapaksa and Shanakiyan Rasamanickam do we see anybody else talking and engaging in politics? Can we listen to a speech of the same quality and depth of one made by Dr. N. M. Perera back in 1956? After 88/89 most political parties were based on one leader and this affected the culture as well. Today people will vote for an individual who will put a Rs. 10 reload or give them a bottle of arrack or even a sewing machine. Sri Lankans love to show their gratitude. This came in the form of vote-buying and votes were sold for money etc. This impacted the quality of individuals contesting elections. We need to introduce slogans such as No Donations for Votes, No Promises for Votes. People should vote for their state or country. Not with an intention of seeking employment or for any other benefit. This is how we can expect people with quality, knowledge and discipline to enter politics,” he said.

A new ray of hope

On May 27, 2022, a gazette notification was issued on the private member bill submitted by Samagi Jana Balawegaya MP Imtiaz Bakeer Markar proposing to make it mandatory to allocate a 25% quota for youth to join politics. The Bill calls on all political parties to have a 25% representation of youth from each electorate when submitting nominations for Parliamentary, Provincial or Local Government elections. As per the bill individuals below the age of the 35 will be considered youth.  

During a recently held press conference, ‘Youth to Lead Sri Lanka’, a citizen pressure group with a special focus on promoting youth political participation and representation endorsed the passage of this Bill as a means of increasing youth participation in politics and the quality of youth in politics. The group believes that it is important to encourage talented and capable young leaders representing all political parties to enter politics to find long-term and sustainable solutions to end a corrupt political culture. 

Campaign finance regulations too should be linked and implemented effectively as soon as possible. Along with that a well-functioning party mechanism should be setup in every political party to build leadership among young leaders”
-  Sachinda Dulanjana

The Youth quota which was introduced in 1990 and was active in years 1991, 1997, 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2011 in the Local Government level was repealed by the Local Authorities Elections (Amendment) Act No 22 of 2012 depriving the youth community of its legal place in politics following a recommendation of the Presidential Commission on Youth convened to inquire into the 88/89 insurrections. 

“It is our view that a quota system is a necessary temporary measure to improve youth political representation in Parliament,” said Sachinda Dulanjana. “But campaign finance regulations too should be linked and implemented effectively as soon as possible. Along with that a well-functioning party mechanism should be setup in every political party to build leadership among young leaders thereby giving them a boost to advance in politics. We are planning to lobby it to youth wings in political parties to get the crème de la crème out of all parties. A majority of politicians in parliament are the elderly and one day they are going to leave a mess for us. This is a long-term solution and a sustainable solution to get the country back to normalcy,” said Dulanjana.

He further said that nepotism and wealth shouldn’t be deciding factors. When asked about the status of campaign financing regulations Dulanjana said “right now the draft is at the legal draftsman’s Department and due to changes in the cabinet, the process has been delayed”.