The Ghana Bar Association (GBA) has questioned Sri Lanka’s eligibility to chair the 2013 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Colombo in November this year over the dismissal of its Chief Justice.
“Sri Lanka has demonstrated complete disregard for the Rule of Law and judicial independence,” Nene Abayaateye Amegatcher, President of the GBA, said at the 2013-2014 Annual Conference of the Association in Ho.
“If the Commonwealth is to maintain its credibility, it must live up to the values it proclaims and take decisive action against the repressive action of its member states including Sri Lanka,” he said.
Nene Amegatcher said Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake’s dismissal was based on “an unfair impeachment process that was ruled illegally by the Supreme Court,” of that country, GNA reported.
He said Chief Justice Bandaranayake’s dismissal “constitutes a direct attack on judicial independence, undermining the ability of the Sri Lankan legal system to provide accountability and end impunity.”
Nene Amegatcher, therefore, called on the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) to reconsider Sri Lanka’s position as Chair of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
