Source: http://archive.ipu.org/parline-e/reports/2295.htm
Timestamp: 2018-09-21 14:22:51
Document Index: 608462690

Matched Legal Cases: ['Art. 63', 'Art. 63', 'Art. 62', 'Art. 70', 'Art. 70', 'Art. 66', 'Art. 66', 'Art. 99', 'Art. 66', 'Art. 66', 'Art. 66', 'Art. 66', 'Art. 66', 'Art. 100', 'Art. 68', 'Art. 65', 'Art. 67', 'Art. 3', 'Art. 78', 'Art. 67', 'Art. 5', 'Art. 17', 'Art. 78', 'Art. 78', 'Art. 66', 'Art. 78', 'Art. 78', 'Art. 66', 'Art. 78', 'Art. 78', 'Art. 66', 'Art. 78', 'Art. 78']

﻿ IPU PARLINE database: SRI LANKA (Parliament), Full text
Affiliation date(s) 1949 -
President Karu Jayasuriya (M)
Notes Elected on 1 Sep. 2015.
Secretary General Dhammika Dasanayake (M)
Notes 15 Feb. 2012 -
Members (statutory / current number) 225 / 225 PERCENTAGE OF WOMEN
Women (current number) 13 (5.78%)
Mode of designation directly elected 225
Last renewal dates 17 August 2015
Phone (94 112) 277 288
777 277
Fax (94 112) 777 275
777 501
E-mail cpa@parliament.lk
http://www.priu.gov.lk/Parliament/Indexpa.html
http://www.parliament.lk/
Electoral law 7 September 1978
1978 Constitution (Last updated on 3 Oct. 2001)
Constituencies - 22 multi-member (4 to 20 seats, depending on population) constituencies (for 196 seats)
- one nationwide constituency (29 seats)
Voting system Proportional: Proportional representation system with preferential voting for 196 seats. Each elector selects specific party or independent group and three of its candidates. Parties polling less than one eighth of vote in each constituency are not entitled for seat allocation.
The remaining 29 "national" seats are distributed to political parties in proportion to their overall share of the votes received in the election.
Vacancies filled by substitutes nominated by same party or group which held seat in question.
- Sri Lankan citizenship
- residence in constituency where voting is held
- disqualifications: insanity, imprisonment of six months or more (in preceding 7 years), death sentence, conviction for corrupt or illegal practice connected with elections, imposition of civic disability.
- ineligibility: undischarged bankrupt, interest in government contract, acceptance of bribe or gratification offered with view to influencing judgment as MP (in preceding 7 years).
Incompatibilities - holders of public offices
- certain employees of corporations
- membership of police or armed forces
- Judicial officers, Secretary General of Parliament and his staff, members of the Public Service Commission and Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration (Ombudsman)
Candidacy requirements - nomination lists submitted from seventh to fifth week prior to polling
- in each district, a party or independent group can nominate up to three more candidates than there are seats to be filled
- groups must also deposit 2,000 rupees per candidate (reimbursable if group polls more than one-eighth of the votes cast in the district)
Timing and scope of renewal Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's United National Party (UNP) won the elections as the largest party in a coalition known as the United National Front for Good Governance (UNFGG, see note). The UNFGG took 11 more seats than the opposition coalition, the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA), led by former President Mahinda Rajapakse. The UPFA includes the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) which is headed by incumbent President Maithripala Sirisena. Despite belonging to an opposition coalition, some SLFP members opposed Mr. Rajapakse and allied themselves to the governing coalition, the UNFGG. During the elections, the major parties promised good governance, transparency, economic progress and stability in the country. On 21 August, Mr. Wickremasinghe was sworn in as the Prime Minister. Later that day, the UNP and the SLFP signed a Memorandum of Understanding to form a new government. The two parties agreed to work together for at least two years. The 46-member Cabinet, formed in September, comprises 33 ministers from the UNFGG and 13 ministers from the SLFP.
Political Group Total of seats Constituency seats National seats
Term - duration: 6 years (term of House)
- reasons for interruption of the term: resignation, death, dissolution of the Parliament, loss of mandate as Member of Parliament
Appointment - elected by all Members of Parliament
- election held at the first meeting of the Parliament, after general elections
- before Members are sworn in
Eligibility - any Member of the Parliament can be candidate
- simple majority
- several rounds are held when there are many candidates
- if more than one round is held, candidates with the smallest number of votes shall be excluded until one candidate obtains more votes than the remaining candidate
Procedures / results - the Secretary General presides over the Parliament during the voting
- the Secretary General supervises the voting
- the Secretary General announces the results without any delay
- the results can be challenged within one calendar month
Status - ranks third in the hierarchy of the State
- in the absence of the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister the Speaker may be called upon as acting Head of State
- is president ex officio of different committees
- in the absence of the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker can assume his/her role and functions, in the absence of both of them, the Deputy Chairman of Committee can do it, if none of them is present, a Member elected by the Parliament presides over the sitting
Material facilities - allowance
- domestic staff
Organization of parliamentary business - establishes and modifies the agenda in consultation with the Party Leaders and the Business Committee
- organizes the debates and sets speaking time with the assistance of the Business Committee
- can appoint some committees and/or their presiding officers
- makes announcements concerning theParliament
- grants permission to speak
Special powers the Secretary General:
- is responsible for establishing the Parliament's budget
- recruits and assigns staff with the approval of the Speaker
- organizes the services of Parliament with the approval of the Speaker
- the President of the Republic appoints the Secretary General
- takes part in voting when the votes are equal
- issues a certificate when a bill has been passed by the Parliament, so that it becomes a law
Start of the mandate When the MPs take the oath (Art. 63 of the Constitution of Feb. 1978, as amended up to 20.12.1988). Procedure (Art. 63 of the Constitution, SO 5 of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka).
Validation of mandates · Validation only in case of challenge by election petitions ((in)validation by the appropriate judiciary). See also Loss of mandate - (c) Election petitions/(d) Loss of mandate for disqualification, including incompatibilities/(g) General procedure.
End of the mandate · On the day when the legal term of the House ends - or on the day of early dissolution (Art. 62 (2) of the Constitution; for early dissolution, see Art. 70 (1) and (5) of the Constitution). Exception (Art. 70 (7) and 155 (4) (i) of the Constitution).
Can MPs resign? Yes · Yes, of their own free will (see Art. 66 (b) of the Constitution)
· Procedure (Art. 66 (b) of the Constitution): an MP resigns by a writing in his own hand addressed to the Secretary-General of Parliament
· Authority competent to accept the resignation: the Secretary-General of Parliament
Can MPs lose their mandate ? Yes (a)	Revocation before expiry of mandate by political parties/loss of mandate for resignation of party membership (Art. 99 (13) (a) of the Constitution)
(b)	Definitive exclusion from Parliament by the latter (Art. 66 (i) and 81 of the Constitution)
(c)	Loss of mandate by judicial decision:
- Election petitions (Art. 66 (g) of the Constitution; see also Validation of mandates)
- Appeal in the case of revocation by political parties (see (a) Revocation before expiry of mandate by political parties)
(d)	Loss of mandate for disqualification, including incompatibilities (Art. 66 (c) to (e), 89 to 91 of the Constitution)
(e)	Loss of mandate for absence from sittings of Parliament (Art. 66 (f) of the Constitution)
(f)	Death (Art. 66 (a) of the Constitution)
(g)	General procedure (Art. 100 of the Constitution)
1.	The Speaker
2.	The Cabinet Ministers
3.	The Deputy Ministers
4.	The other MPs
· Outside Parliament: the official order of precedence ranks the MPs in the 14th position.
· Basic salary (see also Art. 68 of the Constitution): Rs. 265,000 per annum
+ Additional allowance: Rs. 500 per sitting
+ Entertainment allowance: Rs. 1000 per month
+ Fuel allowance: Rs. 7500 per month
+ Cell phone allowance: Rs. 2000 per month
+ Driver's allowance: Rs. 3500 per month
· Total exemption from tax for emoluments drawn as a Member of Parliament
· Group Insurance Scheme
(a) Secretariat (see also Art. 65 of the Constitution)
(b) Assistants
(c) Stationery
(d) Official housing
(e) Security guards
(f) Postal and telephone services
(g) Travel and transport
Parliamentary immunity - parliamentary non-accountability · The concept does exist (Art. 67 of the Constitution, Art. 3, 4 and 7 of the Parliament (Powers and Privileges) Act, No. 21 of 1953).
· Derogations: offence or insult (SO 72, 77, and 84 (viii) of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka), breach of privilege in cases of disobedience to rules or orders of the House (Part II and Schedule to the Parliament (Powers and Privileges) Act, No. 21 of 1953, Art. 78 of the Standing Orders) (for both, see Discipline)
Parliamentary immunity - parliamentary inviolability · The concept does exist (Art. 67 of the Constitution, Art. 5 (1) and 7 of the Parliament (Powers and Privileges) Act, No. 21 of 1953).
· It applies only to civil proceedings, covers all offences, but protects MPs only from arrest and detention.
· However, evidence of proceedings in the House or a committee cannot be given without leave of the House (Art. 17 of the Parliament (Powers and Privileges) Act, No. 21 of 1953).
· Protection is provided from 40 days before the session starts until 40 days after the House has been prorogued or dissolved. Since parliamentary inviolability does not cover judicial proceedings in general, it does not cover judicial proceedings instituted against MPs before their election.
· Parliamentary immunity (inviolability) cannot be lifted.
Training · There is a training/initiation process on parliamentary practices and procedures for MPs. It consists of seminars.
· It is provided by Parliament and political parties. Other.
Participation in the work of the Parliament · It is not compulsory for MPs to be present at plenary sittings, committee meetings or other meetings.
· Penalties foreseen in case of failure to attend: loss of mandate or loss of committee membership
Discipline · The rules governing discipline within Parliament are contained in SO 72 to 78, 84 (vi), (viii), and (xii) of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka.
- Call to order (SO 84 (xii) of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka)
- Naming, suspension, and direction to withdraw from the precincts of Parliament (SO 72 and 75 of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka)
- Order to discontinue the speech (SO 73 of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka)
- Order to withdraw, eventually with naming (SO 74 and 75 of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka)
- Adjournment of Parliament/suspension of the sitting (SO 76 of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka)
- Any other disciplinary measure (SO 77 (1), 78, and 84 (vi) and (viii) of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka)
- Deletion from the Official Report (SO 77 (2) of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka)
- Offence or insult (SO 72, 77, and 84 (viii) of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka)
- Breach of privilege in cases of disobedience to rules or orders of the House (Part II and Schedule to the Parliament (Powers and Privileges) Act, No. 21 of 1953, Art. 78 of the Standing Orders): imprisonment, fine; admonition at the Bar of Parliament, removal from the precincts of Parliament, suspension
· Competent body to judge such cases/to apply penalties:
- Call to order: the Speaker or any other Member
- Naming, suspension, and direction to withdraw from the precincts of Parliament, offence or insult: the Speaker; the Parliament; the Speaker
- Order to discontinue the speech, order to withdraw, eventually with naming, adjournment of Parliament/suspension of the sitting, deletion from the Official Report: the Speaker
- Any other disciplinary measure, offence or insult: the Parliament
- Breach of privilege in cases of disobedience to rules or orders of the House: the Supreme Court, the Parliament
- Naming, suspension, and direction to withdraw from the precincts of Parliament, offence or insult (SO 72 and 75 of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka)
- Any other disciplinary measure, offence or insult (SO 77 (1), 78, and 84 (vi) and (viii) of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka)
- Deletion from the Official Report, offence or insult (SO 77 (2) of the Standing Orders of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka)
- Breach of privilege in cases of disobedience to rules or orders of the House (Part II and Schedule to the Parliament (Powers and Privileges) Act, No. 21 of 1953, Art. 78 of the Standing Orders)
Code (rules) of conduct · This concept does not exist for Members of Parliament but there are some relevant provisions (Art. 66 (c) to (e), and (i), Art. 78, 81, 89 to 91, and 99 (13) (a) of the Constitution, Art. 78 of the Standing Orders, Part II and Schedule to the Parliament (Powers and Privileges) Act, No. 21 of 1953; for the declaration of interests, see Obligation to declare personal assets).
· Penalties foreseen for violation of those rules:
- Loss of mandate (Art. 66 (c) to (e), and (i), Art. 78, 81, 89 to 91, and 99 (13) (a) of the Constitution; revocation before expiry of mandate by political parties/definitive exclusion from Parliament by the latter for civic disability/disqualification, including incompatibilities)
- Imprisonment, fine; admonition at the Bar of Parliament, removal from the precincts of Parliament, suspension (Part II and Schedule to the Parliament (Powers and Privileges) Act, No. 21 of 1953, Art. 78 of the Standing Orders)
- Loss of mandate: political parties; the Supreme Court/the Parliament;
- Imprisonment, fine; admonition at the Bar of Parliament, removal from the precincts of Parliament, suspension: the Supreme Court; the Parliament
- Loss of mandate (Art. 66 (c) to (e), and (i), Art. 78, 81, 89 to 91, and 99 (13) (a) of the Constitution). In the case of revocation before expiry of mandate by political parties, MPs have means of recourse. In the case of definitive exclusion from Parliament by the latter for civic disability, they do not.
- Imprisonment, fine; admonition at the Bar of Parliament, removal from the precincts of Parliament, suspension (Part II and Schedule to the Parliament (Powers and Privileges) Act, No. 21 of 1953, Art. 78 of the Standing Orders).