Key facts
- Sri Lanka's parliament approved a constitutional amendment to extend superior court judges' tenure by two years.
- The amendment aims to clear an estimated 1.1 million court cases.
- The constitutional amendment was approved with a two-thirds majority.
- The move follows two recent prison riots that killed 31 people.
- The amendment will extend the tenure of Supreme Court, Appeals Court, High Court judges, and the Chief Justice by two years each.
- The opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya protested the amendment, citing concerns about judicial independence.
COLOMBO, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's parliament approved an amendment to the island nation's constitution on Friday to extend superior court judges' tenure by two years. This legislative action is part of broader efforts to address a significant backlog of cases and alleviate overcrowding in the country's prison system, which has been strained by recent deadly riots.
The amendment seeks to tackle an estimated 1.1 million court cases that are currently pending. The move follows two recent prison riots that resulted in the deaths of 31 people, including 10 prison officials, and left dozens more injured. The prison facilities, designed for approximately 11,000 inmates, are currently holding over 41,000, a substantial portion of whom are remand prisoners awaiting trial.
The 22nd amendment to Sri Lanka's constitution was passed with a two-thirds majority in the 225-member house. It will extend the terms of Supreme Court, Appeals Court, and High Court judges, as well as the Chief Justice, by two years each. Additionally, a separate draft bill was approved to extend the tenure of district and magistrate judges by two years.
Bimal Rathnayake, Leader of the House, informed lawmakers prior to the vote that the constitutional amendment was solely intended to support judicial reforms and did not anticipate significant public opposition. However, Sri Lanka's main opposition party, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya, protested the amendment by wearing black to parliament, arguing that it could undermine judicial independence.