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PTI
Colombo
Sri Lanka's main Tamil party TNA will not be a part of the ongoing constitution-making process and will quit if the government abandons the idea of finding a political solution to the Tamil issue and more devolution is not considered, a senior party leader has said.
"We have a mandate from the people for a federal constitution with the merger of North and East to resolve the national question. Discussions are underway with the government on how best to come to an agreement. We cannot accept the 13th Amendment as a comprehensive power sharing mechanism," said senior Tamil National Alliance (TNA) member Dharmalingam Siddharthan.
"If the Government abandoned the idea of finding a solution for the national question, we won't be part of the constitution-making process and we would be compelled to leave it," Siddharthan was quoted as saying by the Sunday Times. The report said the TNA had been pressing for a power sharing~arrangements in the new constitution. It wants a system in a merged north and east provinces based on a federal structure.
However, the south-based Sinhala majority parties are averse to even discussing a federal solution to the Tamil minority issue. President Maithripala Sirisena addressing a political gathering in the southern district of Galle on Saturday ruled out a federal solution.
