Top UN official’s visit : TNA pushes for constitutional reform | Page 2 | Sunday Observer

Top UN official’s visit : TNA pushes for constitutional reform

11 March, 2018
Jeffrey Feltman
Jeffrey Feltman

UN Under Secretary General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman who is currently in Sri Lanka on a scheduled visit, met the TNA leaders Friday evening where he was asked to push for constitutional reforms by TNA Leader R. Sampanthan.

Prior to the meeting with the TNA at the Opposition Leader’s Office in Parliament, Feltman met President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe, separately. The discussions had revolved around the progress of the reconciliation process.

He also met with Foreign Minister Tilak Marapana and Defence Secretary Kapila Waidyaratne on Friday.

In his discussions with the TNA, the Opposition Leader has stressed that the Government cannot fail to proceed with the ongoing Constitution-making process.

“If it abandons the process it would only mean that the state is unable to comply with the resolution unanimously adopted by the Sri Lankan Parliament for the enactment of a constitution for Sri Lanka as one single, undivided and indivisible country,” a release from the TNA Office yesterday stated, quoting Sampanthan.

Stressing that undue delay in adhering to the resolution has made people lose confidence in the Government and its structures, the Opposition Leader has called for closer cooperation from the international community to compel the Government to fully implement the UNHCR resolution.

According to the release, the UN Under Secretary General has informed the TNA delegation that he has raised concerns with the President over ‘some of these matters’. He had conveyed that the High Commissioner will be briefed on his return about the concerns raised by the TNA.

The UN Under Secretary General was to undertake a visit to Kandy but in view of the current instability there, his planned visit has been cancelled. A Foreign Ministry source without elaborating said the visiting UN envoy will not be going out of Colombo. He arrived in Colombo on Thursday and will be departing today. 

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