It is readily apparent to an impartial observer that the burden the entire country has had to bear for nearly 15 years as a result of the ethnic conflict has retarded our nation's progress and that our people yearn for peace, security and a brighter future for our children. The war has impacted adversely on every Sri Lankan and every person hopes for a future free from the shadow cast by the spectre of conflict which has darkened the lives of all. It is this growing realization amongst our people that a political solution to the conflict is necessary that has prompted the Government to seek to evolve such a solution. The Government has, at every turn, kept the public fully informed at to the nature and scope of the constitutional reform process that the public, being fully informed and convinced of their inherent merit, may at the appropriate time, endorse the proposed changes. The sincerity and commitment of the political leadership to devise a solution based on genuine regional autonomy within a constitutional structure predicated on the preservation of unity, territorial integrity and sovereignty, is universally accepted.
Devolution admits of a duality of objectives which are complementary and interconnected.
On the one hand the economic dimension, ensuring speedier and more effective decision making based on local experience and know-how, has to be considered. The recent exchange of letters between the President and Leader of the Opposition has provided us with an opportunity for forging ahead in our effort to find a solution to the crisis. The ideal mechanism that can be used to construct a genuine solution based on the ground breaking accord between the political leadership is the Select Committee. The PSC is the modality we intend using in preparing the new Constitution and, accordingly, it will provide the perfect means for evolving a solution to the ethnic issue which necessarily must be addressed within a Parliamentary setting. The agreement reached will further assist in infusing a spirit of increased goodwill and cooperation into the process.