Democracy

Where democracy rests with the people they alone choose their government. A Constitution that enshrines this concept ensures that the exercise of this sovereignty in its legislative, executive and judicial sectors are through the elected representatives of the people. Our own Constitution ensures that the sovereignty of the people is exercised thus:

The legislative powers of Parliament elected by the people
The executive power of the President of the Republic elected by the people
The judicial power of Parliament through Courts of Law

This is the gist of speech made by President Jayewardene at the 4th convention of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka on 25th March 1978.

Sri Lanka, small as it is, has an unbroken history of over 2500 years of a tortuous path where fundamental rights and democratic freedom are concerned. Sri Lanka under the Sinhalese Kings partly lost its sovereignty under the Portuguese and Dutch rule and became completely subservient as a British Colony in 1815. It was after many a struggle and a determined resurgence that a few patriotic and courageous leaders were thrust towards gaining independence.

In the new Constitution (1978), the Parliament was supreme but not with regard to the length of its office. There the people are supreme. If the life of the Parliament is to be extended there must be a referendum. It applies to the term of office of the President too. If the term of office of the President is to be extended it should be by referendum. The right to permit the President to continue beyond the tenure of six years lies with people and not the Parliament, though elected by the people. The Public Security Act cannot be enforced without a debate and a vote in Parliament. If an extension of Emergency beyond three months is sought, a debate and a vote of two thirds of the Parliament must be obtained. Prior to the present Constitution, the Public Security Act was imposed for six years in Sri Lanka without giving an opportunity for Parliament to debate that position.

President Jayewardene always referred to a just society. By just he meant a socialist society in the sense that he wanted every man to enjoy the fruits of development, bring up his family with equal opportunity and every child to attend school to study. He called it a Socialist society. We are not for a Capitalist society, he declared, and not for a socialist society. But we are for a socialist society which is also democratic. "Democracy without socialism is a democracy of exploitation. Socialism seeks to redress the social injustices where a few enjoy luxuries and comforts while the rest live without food and clothing in huts and hovels. Democracy and Socialism must go hand in hand. Men and women who are threatened by guns and bombs are not sovereign. Nor are men and women sovereign who are unable to secure their basic needs from day to day.

President Jayewardene also held the view that democracy can serve only when those holding public office 'abide by recognized standards of public conduct'. Not only politicians, but even the members of the judiciary have special standards of behaviour which require them to be impartial. In such matters the ultimate verdict lies in the hands of the people who elect or discard Presidents, Prime Ministers and Members of Parliament. It happens only in a democratic state.

"We are a democracy and just as we have enshrined the sovereignty of man in our Constitution. We want the sovereignty of a man to be protected universally"

(Ideas and excerpts reproduced in this script are those extracted from various speeches made by His Excellency President Jayewardene.)