Champika Ranawaka’s arrest violates parliamentary norms - Speaker’s Office

The procedure of arresting MP Patali Champika Ranawaka has violated the parliamentary traditions that follow when taking a Member of Parliament into custody, says the Office of the Speaker.

The rulings by former Speaker of the Parliament Chamal Rajapaksa, recorded in hansards of 2015.03.03 – 232/12 and 2015.04.21 – 234/6, have also mentioned similar situations in the past when an arrest of a parliamentarian had breached the parliamentary traditions.

Issuing a media statement, the Speaker’s Office said, Speaker Karu Jayasuriya is of the stance that he should be notified before arresting a Member of Parliament.

While in the Opposition during the past four years, the current government had vehemently defended the parliamentary traditions that were followed when arresting an MP, however, right after assuming power they are turning a blind eye to the violation of this tradition, the statement said expressing its concerns.

It is the responsibility of the government to enforce the law on any offense and all citizens of the country are obliged to respect the law, the statement emphasized.

However, violating the parliamentary democracy and privileges of public representatives is a challenge to the important norms of a democratic system of governance and a dangerous sign of the collapse of parliamentary democracy, the Speaker’s Office pointed out in its statement.