TRAVAILS OF CONSTITUTION MAKING
01 March 2017When a Head of State, in this case President Sirisena, defines bilateral relations with a specific country, in this case the United States, as having reached 'a new height', there's more than a mere passing significance to such a statement.
He said this at the conclusion of talks last week with the US Congressional Delegation at the Presidential Secretariat which the US Embassy in Colombo called a reaffirmation of the "Bipartisan US Support for Sri Lanka". That delegation comprised House of Representatives Judiciary Committee members.
Obviously there's a lot more than that which meets the eye when in a fortnight, members of the US Congress visit Sri Lanka for top level talks with government leaders.
The US Embassy described this as being a demonstration of the "bipartisan support in the legislative branch of the US Government for Sri Lanka's democracy and its efforts to ensure lasting reconciliation."
The House of Representatives is empowered to initiate all federal legislation. The USA delegation discussed Sri Lanka's proposed new Constitution besides "strategic issues affecting vital sea lanes in the Indo-Pacific"....and also was briefed on Sri Lanka's progress in forging lasting reconciliation and a non-recurrence of conflict. Talks then went on to examine matters relating to economic reforms which could increase bilateral trade and investment between the United States and Sri Lanka.
The delegation also expressed support for Sri Lanka's efforts to fulfil its Geneva commitments, 'including more land returns'.
In political usage, this word 'bipartisan' is of special significance in that it is supposed to mean that two parties have agreed on a programme of work that brings benefits for both sides.
So when President Sirisena says that this bipartisan relationship has reached 'new heights' one is left to come to his own conclusions.
Neither side spelt out what exactly was discussed in relation to "strategic issues affecting vital sea lanes in the Indo-Pacific." Nor was anything forthcoming by way of even a media release defining exactly in what manner the proposed "new Constitution and progress in reconciliation and non-recurrence of conflict" will benefit Sri Lanka by way of rewards from the US in giving Sri Lanka greater access to US markets and increase US investments in Sri Lanka.
In a "bipartisan" relationship as differentiated from a bilateral relationship, in modern political usage, is a word that implies that two parties broadly agree on a centrist position. Judging by all the issues broached in the talks, one can perhaps hence assume that the US does have some influence in the drafting of the new Constitution. With less than a fortnight for the Geneva UNHRC sessions on Sri Lanka to be held, one can also perhaps presume that the US could end using influence on Colombo to come up with some concessions to a political settlement approximating federalism along US federal lines in the proposed new Constitution.
The people in the US delegations were not, as during the Obama regime, from the US South Asia Desk such as that formerly headed by Tom Malinowski, nor from Samantha Power's then team but top US Congressmen from the House of Representatives who are veteran legislators of the US Government to whom the drafting of Constitutions is child's play. One is compelled to ask how much of a role this will play in further 'heightened relations' by way of "Strategic issues effecting vital sea lanes in the Indo-Pacific area", an issue that directly involves the use of harbours and airports and a modicum of defence cooperation in joint operations.
We wrote a month ago that Donald Trump would be making moves to consolidate US security interests in the Indo-Pacific area and would soon be sending Defence Secretary Jim Mattis for talks with Narendra Modi in Delhi. It appears that Modi, in anticipation of such a possibility sent his Defence Secretary Jaishankar for talks here earlier last week with Sirisena and Wickemesinghe to be able to answer questions from Mattis on collaboration from Sri Lanka. Jaishankar obviously went back with firm reassurances of Colombo's cooperation in matters to do with security fears stoked by China's daring moves to extend Beijing's sphere of influence in the South China Sea and beyond into the Indo-Pacific area.
US House of Representatives Judiciary Committee members met Speaker Karu Jayasuriya and Opposition Leader R. Sampanthan to discuss strengthened cooperation between the Sri Lanka Parliament and US Congress.
US Representative Hank Johnson (Democrat – Georgia), one of the first Buddhists elected to the US Congress, offered his respects at the Gangaramaya Temple where the delegations had unofficial exchanges on Buddhist practices.
It would appear that the drafting of Sri Lanka's new Constitution is held hostage by more forces than merely the TNA, the Tamil pro-LTTE diaspora and the singular search for a solution to the grievances of the Tamils.
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