Sri Lanka

B

Legislature

The legislature of Sri Lanka is a unicameral (single-chamber) body called Parliament. It has 225 members; 196 members are directly elected and 29 are appointed from national party lists that are compiled according to which parties won at least 5 percent of the vote. Members serve six-year terms. No term limits are imposed. Members are elected under a modified system of proportional representation. The prime minister is traditionally the leader of the political party that obtains a majority of seats in Parliament. If no party gains a majority, a member of Parliament who obtains the support of a majority of members may be appointed prime minister.

C

Judiciary

The judicial system of Sri Lanka includes a Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, High Court, magistrates courts, and primary courts. The Supreme Court is the highest court. It is comprised of seven judges, including a chief justice. The president of the republic appoints the justices of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal. No term limits are imposed for the justices.

Under the 1978 constitution, oversight of the judiciary is provided by a three-member Judicial Commission, comprised of the chief justice of the Supreme Court and two other judges. The commission is responsible for reviewing judicial appointments (except those to the Supreme Court) and protecting the judiciary from political interference.

The laws of Sri Lanka reflect diverse cultural influences. Criminal laws are based primarily on British law. Civil laws are based on Roman-Dutch law. Marriage, divorce, and inheritance laws are communal, based on Tesavalami (Tamil law), Kandyan law (Sinhalese), and Islamic family law.

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D

Local Government

For purposes of local government, the country of Sri Lanka is divided into nine provinces: Western Province, Central Province, Southern Province, Northern Province, Eastern Province, North-Western Province, North-Central Province, Uva Province, and Sabaragamuwa Province. The provinces are subdivided into a total of 25 districts.

In 1989 the 13th amendment to the constitution gave more power to the provinces. Provincial councils were established, and elections were held to elect provincial councils in all but the Northern and Eastern provinces, where the civil war continued to be centered. Members of the provincial councils are directly elected to serve five-year terms. The councils possess limited powers in education, health, rural development, social services, agriculture, security, and local taxation. Each province is headed by a governor, who is appointed by the president.

Local government also includes district councils, municipal councils, urban councils, and village-level councils. All local governments have limited powers, and the president of the republic has the power to dissolve them at will.

E

Political Parties

The United National Party (UNP) and the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) are the country’s two leading political parties. Both parties are democratic socialist in orientation. Since 1948 they have generally alternated in forming governments, often in coalition with other parties. Governing coalitions led by the SLFP have included the United Left Front (ULF), formed in 1968, and the People’s Alliance (PA), formed in 1994. The People’s Alliance was later renamed the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA).

Other prominent political parties in Sri Lanka include the National Heritage Party; the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress; the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), long the foremost Tamil political party; the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP; People’s Liberation Front), a Marxist party with a Sinhalese base of support; the Communist Party of Sri Lanka (CPSL); and Sihala Urumaya (SU; Legacy of Sinhalese), a Sinhalese Buddhist party. The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) is the political arm of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a militant separatist Tamil organization.

F

Social Services

The government of Sri Lanka provides a comprehensive set of social services, including free education, free health care, and income assistance. Through the provision of fully state-funded education, Sri Lanka has achieved an unusually high literacy rate for a developing nation. The state-run health-care system includes a widespread network of health-care facilities that provide basic services free of charge. The health-care system has helped raise the average life expectancy in Sri Lanka. Various income assistance programs over the years have helped address nutritional deficiencies of the poor. An ambitious housing program launched in the 1980s enabled people of low incomes to acquire homes.

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