Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) Presidential hopeful, Gotabaya Rajapaksa stated that he proposes to lead a future Government that will revere and uphold democracy, and safeguards the rights of the public.

The former Defense Secretary stated this addressing the SLPP Lawyers’ Convention held yesterday (31). The convention held at the Kingsbury Hotel in Colombo was attended by Opposition Leader Mahinda Rajapaksa, members of the SLPP and members of the SLPP Lawyers’ Association. 

Addressing the event, Gotabaya Rajapaksa said that, recently, doubts have arisen among the public with regard to the institutions and officials entrusted with upholding the law.

Following is an excerpt from his complete speech:

“The legal profession is one of the most respected professions in the country. It is one with a very long and rich history.

Tracing its origins to ancient Greece, the legal profession developed further in ancient Rome and later proliferated throughout Europe and the rest of the world. Law, as a formally structured profession with its own training traditions and rigorous professional standards, was established in Sri Lanka in the 1830s.

It is the primary responsibility of legal professionals to study the law, practice the law, nurture the law and safeguard the law.

The granting of universal franchise in Sri Lanka in 1931 under the recommendations of the Donoughmore commission took place at a time before democracy was firmly established in many of today’s developed nations.

The universal franchise has been the foundational force behind the transition from monarchical rule to democratic governance in republics throughout the world.

Although we still repose our trust in the independence of the judiciary, when looking at recent trends, we must admit to having questions about the independence of some of the other institutions and officials entrusted with upholding the rule of law.

Many of our courtrooms are in dilapidated condition today. Unless action is taken swiftly, it is likely that these buildings will be unusable in the near future. It is in this context that we hope to re-implement the program to develop the infrastructure of the court system which was planned by the previous Government in 2014.

The reintroduction of this infrastructure development program will ensure that you will be able to practice your profession in all the main cities and other towns of the country with due dignity and ease.

I know that being appointed President’s Counsel is one of the highest honors any lawyer can aspire to. Although our nations’ leaders have historically striven to safeguard the dignity of this honor, concerns have arisen regarding certain appointments made to this position in the recent past.

In the future, I look forward to seeking the advice of the Chief Justice, Attorney General, legal experts, and the Bar Association in order to establish a transparent, rigid procedure to govern appointments to the position of Presidents’ Counsel.

We need the support of domestic and foreign investors to accelerate the nation’s economic development.

When investors select countries to invest in, the efficient operation of the law within the country is one of the first things they look at. They pay particular attention to the independence of the judiciary and the efficiency of the legal system. They also examine whether the laws of the nation are in consonance with international law.

Legal scholars should, therefore, look at improving the mechanisms available for the swift settlement of legal disputes in Sri Lanka, including such speedy and efficient measures as arbitration. Just as Singapore today has established a global reputation as a center for arbitration, Sri Lanka too should aspire to establishing a reputation for different specialisms in the legal sphere in future.

I propose to lead a future Government that will always revere and uphold democracy, and always safeguard the rights of the public.

There is a popular false narrative about human rights violations which supposedly took place in the last stages of the war against terrorism. However, this false narrative blithely ignores the many delays in the pursuit of victory that arose from our strong commitment to protect and uphold human rights. Although it would have been possible for us to pursue a faster resolution to the war by using heavy artillery, we did not. Instead, we chose to pursue victory using only light arms, even though this resulted in thousands of war heroes sacrificing their lives.

This strategy was pursued because of the nearly 300,000 innocent Tamil civilians entrapped by the LTTE for use as a human shield during the last stages of the war. Rescuing them from danger was our primary aim. This is glibly forgotten by those who seek to attack us on the topic of human rights. So too is the fact that more than 11,000 LTTE cadres were rehabilitated and reintegrated into society in the aftermath of the war.”