SRI LANKA: OPPOSITION "CROSSOVERS" PRESENT THEIR

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 000747 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/INS MCC FOR D NASSIRY AND E BURKE E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/23/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PHUM CE SUBJECT: SRI LANKA: OPPOSITION "CROSSOVERS" PRESENT THEIR OWN IDEAS ON DEVOLUTION REF: A. COLOMBO 705 ¶B. COLOMBO 661 ¶C. COLOMBO 643 Classified By: Ambassador Robert O. Blake, Jr., for reasons 1.4(b,d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: On May 22, a group of "crossover" United National Party (UNP) Members of Parliament (MP) held a press conference to release their own devolution proposal. The UNP defectors are not members of the All Parties Representative Committee (APRC),but APRC Chairman Tissa Vitharana has agreed to distribute their proposals among the committee members. The UNP defectors' proposal recommends that the main unit of devolution should be the province, a sharp contrast to the ruling Sri Lanka Freedom Party's (SLFP) preference for devolution to the district. Tourism Minister Milinda Moragoda explained to the Ambassador last week that he and the group's leader, Karu Jayasuriya, have strong ties to the conservative Buddhist leadership and are therefore well placed to help resolve the APRC impasse. The submission of proposals by the UNP defectors is a useful initiative designed to give the President political space to shift his own position. It may also help fill the vacuum left by the mainstream UNP, which has dismissed the proposal of the President's party as meaningless and now seems reluctant to engage seriously within the APRC. End Summary. ¶2. (C) On May 22, Tourism Minister Milinda Moragoda and Public Administration and Home Affairs Minister Karu Jayasuriya, representing the group of 17 "crossover" United National Party (UNP) MPs, held a press conference to release their own devolution proposal. The UNP defectors, calling themselves the UNP Democratic Group, are not presently members of the APRC. However, APRC Chairman Tissa Vitharana has already agreed to distribute their proposals among the committee members. He also stated that if the group wishes to participate in APRC deliberations, he will consult with the President and consider admitting them. The President will likely approve their participation. Defectors' Proposal Recommends Devolution to the Provinces -------------- -------------- ¶3. (C) The UNP defectors' proposal recommends that the main unit of devolution should be the province -- a sharp contrast to the ruling Sri Lanka Freedom Party's (SLFP) preference for devolution to the district. It also suggests an executive presidency accountable to the parliament and a second chamber of parliament composed of representatives from the provinces. Under their draft, the Center would retain control over defense, national security, special forces, and the Coast Guard, but police powers would be devolved to the provinces. (Note: The SLFP proposal did not devolve police power away from the Center.) The new proposal emphasizes the need to have a clear division of power, preferably without a "concurrent" list of powers shared by the central government and the local or provincial units. The proposal avoided several controversial issues, however, such as the merger of the North and Eastern Provinces and whether the Sri Lankan State should be defined as "united" or "unitary." Sinhalese nationalists have been adamant that the State be considered "unitary," arguing that "united" implies a federal system. Defectors Claim to Have Buddhist Support -------------- ¶4. (C) Moragoda explained to the Ambassador last week that he and Jayasuriya have strong links to establishment Buddhists power centers, and are therefore well placed to help resolve the APRC impasse. Both President Rajapaksa and UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe are reluctant to take the lead in advocating for a proposal acceptable to the Tamils COLOMBO 00000747 002 OF 002 for fear of alienating the JVP and their southern bases of support. The crossovers' objective in floating their own proposal is to provide the President political space to give way on the SLFP position on devolution by bringing substantial Buddhist support to the table. Moragoda said Wickremesinghe is unable to lead the APRC debate because the departure of the crossover MPs marked a significant drop in Buddhist support for the UNP. He noted that the defectors had received the President's support before they proceeded with their proposal. ¶5. (C) COMMENT: The UNP defectors' proposal may prove to be a most useful initiative, especially since signals from the mainstream UNP in recent days have been negative. The UNP leaders, having dismissed the President's proposal as a sham, are under pressure from their supporters to mount a more aggressive opposition to the Rajapaksa administration. A constructive dialogue with the government on devolution, leading to a consensus proposal, does not seem to fit in with this game plan of fundamental opposition. The UNP dissidents hope to break this logjam. The Embassy will gauge reactions in coming days and report further next week. BLAKE