Resolution on ethnic issue in P’ment this week

The Government is preparing to bring a resolution to set up a Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) to find a political solution to the ethnic issue on Tuesday (5), government sources said.

Leader of the House and Minister of Irrigation and Water Resource Management Nimal Siripala de Silva is to table the resolution. He is also a member of the government team that currently holds talks with the major Tamil party Tamil National Alliance (TNA).

Government sources say the PSC that will have a quasi-judicial power, will comprise 31 members, with the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government nominating 19 members and the opposition nominating 12 members to the PSC.

Sources said that the 16 political parties in the UPFA government will have one slot each in the committee while dominating Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) would be given four positions in the PSC.

The government meanwhile has called on the opposition political parties to officially state their stance on the proposed PSC.

Minister de Silva has told the media that the opposition political parties needed to officially state their stance, as there has not been any official communication apart from reports in the media on the matter.

He has said that none of the opposition political parties have officially informed the government that they would not be participating in the PSC.

According to de Silva, decisions on the PSC could not be taken based on media reports.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa proposed the setting up of a PSC to discuss and bring a political solution to the ethnic issue.

He has said that he will accept any decision of the parliament on the ethnic issue and a solution should not be confined to discussions with one party.

(Colombo Page)