Judges’ retirement age amendment seen as path to one‑party rule – Sajith

Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa has warned that the government’s proposal to raise the retirement age of Supreme Court judges from 65 to 67 and Appeal Court judges from 63 to 65 is an attempt to establish a one‑party authoritarian command rule under the National People’s Power (NPP) government. Speaking at a public lecture organized by the Samagi Lawyers’ Association at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute yesterday (19), Premadasa said the move undermines judicial independence, erodes public trust in the courts, and destroys democracy. He questioned why the government is pursuing only this amendment without abolishing the executive presidency, noting that when asked in Parliament, ministers denied such a plan. Premadasa drew on international precedents, from Magna Carta and medieval English common law to the U.S. Constitution of 1787, the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the 1985 Basic Principles on Judicial Independence, to argue that democracy is strengthened through separation of powers and checks and balances. He stressed that the more independent the judiciary, the stronger democracy becomes. He accused the government of betraying the people’s mandate, saying President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and others had promised to protect democracy but are instead working to entrench authoritarian one‑party rule. He urged citizens to unite across party and class lines to defeat what he called anti‑democratic measures. Premadasa also warned that such actions could trigger pressure from institutions like the IMF, create economic challenges, and affect concessions such as the EU’s GSP+. He said the public must be made aware of these consequences and that the wrong actions must be defeated by people’s strength. “The era when judicial independence was undermined must not return,” Premadasa declared, adding that the gathering was aimed at safeguarding both democracy and the independence of the judiciary. (Newswire)