The APRC: A Primer for Constitutional Consensus = සර්ව පාක්ෂික නියෝජිත කමිටුව: ව්‍යවස්ථාමය සම්මුතියකට ප්‍රවේශයක්

Abstract

This report is a historical study that aims to: 1. Explain the failure of successive attempts at state reform culminating in the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) process; and 2. Demonstrate that the proposals of the APRC can represent a valuable starting point for renewed deliberations on constitutional reform. It is presented in five sections: Section I outlines constitutional reform attempts prior to the APRC by successive governments, spanning from Sri Lanka’s early post-independence years to mid-2006 when the APRC was established. Section II provides an outline of the main events with regard to the APRC from its establishment to the release of its report. Section III seeks to explain the repeated failure of state reform attempts in Sri Lanka and how particular historical factors undermined the APRC’s proceedings. Section IV discusses the key outputs of the APRC and provides a summary of the proposals contained in the APRC’s final report. Section V discusses the continued relevance of the APRC proposals as a sound basis for constitutional reform aimed at resolving the national question.

This report has pointed to two interrelated factors that have historically undermined progress towards state reform in Sri Lanka: 1. The influence of majoritarian Sinhala-Buddhist ideology in defining the limits of acceptable reform of the Sri Lankan state; and 2. The practice of ethnic outbidding by southern political parties to mobilise their Sinhala majority constituency against power sharing proposals put forward. The proposals contained in the APRC’s final report warrant further consideration than they have been afforded thus far. The ongoing constitutional reform process has presented an important opportunity to revisit the APRC’s proposals. As the product of extensive discussions across a wide cross-section of political parties, the APRC process has laid much of the groundwork upon which renewed deliberations can take place. One step forward would be for the government to formally publish the APRC’s final report as a precursor to meaningful dialogue with minority political parties. As a sound basis for further negotiation, the APRC’s proposals have a vital role to play in securing a long overdue resolution to Sri Lanka’s national question.