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To Amend or Not to Amend

Previous governments in Sri Lanka have used the 13th Amendment as a distraction from other more important issues. Is President Ranil Wickremesinghe using the amendment as political ploy to remain in power and shift the public focus from economic issues?

By Atif Shamim Syed | March 2023

Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe addressed the Sri Lankan nation during the Independence Day celebrations on February 4, 2023. As expected, his speech started with the mention of the crisis-hit Sri Lankan economy, and the dire need for implementing painful austerity measures demanded by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Sri Lankan President went on to stress the need for national unity in the face of current crisis. In this context, he announced his intention to implement the 13th Amendment. The 13th Amendment is part of the Constitution since 1987, but it has never been completely implemented owing to the controversy surrounding it.

Seeking to resolve the island’s long-standing ethnic conflict, the 13th Amendment was passed in 1987 as part of an agreement between Sri Lanka and India. The constitutional revision led to the devolution of certain powers to the provincial administrations including health, education, housing, agriculture and housing. However, the most important aspects of the amendment – land and Police – were never implemented.

The 13th Amendment was controversial since its inception. It was opposed by Sinhalese nationalists because they deemed it favouring minority Tamils at the behest of India. Tamil separatists rejected it because they thought it did not address all their grievances. However, mainstream Tamil politicians thought it was a modicum of accomplishment that could be built upon for furthering their demands for equal rights. Successive governments deemed the issue too risky to handle and thus, the amendment remained in limbo for more than three decades.

Reaction to President Wickremesinghe’s recent announcement was predictable. Two of the three main nationalist parties - Freedom People’s Alliance (FPA) and National Freedom Front (NFF) - opposed the full implementation of the amendment with the latter threatening violence. The third party - The National People’s Power (NPP) – refrained from showing direct disagreement, but it did say that implementation of the 13th Amendment will not provide a permanent solution to the ethnic issue.

The powerful Buddhist clergy has registered its opposition to the president’s proposition in very strong words. They fear that the move will encourage separatism and if the president goes through with it, he will have to face widespread public condemnation.

Tamils are sceptic. Their main political party, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) has been pressing for full implementation of the 13th Amendment as a means of accomplishing a comprehensive political settlement. However, there has been no tangible government action regarding repeated demands for putting stop to continuous land grabbing in the North and East, and arbitrary police detentions. Tamils have lost faith in the process and see the latest announcement as President Wickremesinghe’s political ploy to remain in power.

While some politicians are criticizing the president for bringing up this highly controversial topic at such a crucial time, others see Indian machinations behind Wickremesinghe’s untimely announcement.


Back in the late 1980s, when he Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was wreaking havoc in the country, Indians came up with the 13th Amendment – a largely structural power sharing arrangement – and hailed it as the solution to the Tamil problem. It was a follow-up on the Indo-Lanka Accord and imposed on Sri Lanka at the barrel of a gun.

Since its inception, India has repeatedly demanded its full implementation, always maintaining that a unified and peaceful country can only exist if Tamils and other minorities are given their due share in governance. India has a sizeable Tamil population of its own. On many occasions, New Delhi has presented the 13th Amendment to its own Tamil community as a proof of its commitment towards the well-being of their brethren in neighbouring Sri Lanka.

As per Indo-Lanka agreement of 1987, India was obligated to disarm the Tamil insurgency. Over the subsequent years, New Delhi failed to meet this obligation. Sri Lanka was ravaged by the conflict between the LTTE and the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF). Finally, it was the Sri Lankan army that defeated LTTE in 2009, putting an end to the decades-long armed rebellion. Nationalists believe that India, not having fulfilled its part of the bargain, has no right to demand implementation of the controversial amendment.

Some political analysts believe that the 13th Amendment, though highly debatable, is the only existing arrangement between the federal government and the provinces. Political parties can modify it further in order to suit the current situation. Once properly implemented, it could lay the foundation for long-term reconciliation between ethnic communities.

Unfortunately, previous governments have always used the amendment as a distraction from other more important issues. It also served as a carrot whenever support of Tamil parliamentarians was required for passing legislations.

Ranil Wickremesinghe is a seasoned politician. But he is not a duly elected president. He was handed the reins of the country by the parliament when the previous president hastily fled the capital in the aftermath of violent public protests. Wickremesinghe has used the 13th Amendment in the past to woe Tamil politicians. He may have again trumped it up as a means of shifting the public’s focus from economic issues. Moreover, he also needs support from Tamil politicians for carrying out unpopular reforms dictated by the IMF.

Public demonstrations have started again in Sri Lanka. These are mostly organized by trade unions and do not seem to have widespread support at the moment. But these protests can get out of control any time. President Wickremesinghe has very little time to secure the IMF deal in order to relieve economic pressure on the layman. If he fails to deliver on the economic front, he will be destined to the same fate as his predecessor. This time, the 13th Amendment may not become his salvation.

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