{"id":64396,"date":"2019-06-01T20:30:21","date_gmt":"2019-06-02T00:30:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=64396"},"modified":"2019-06-01T20:30:21","modified_gmt":"2019-06-02T00:30:21","slug":"despite-opposition-by-the-joint-opposition-the-parliamentary-select-committee-hearings-on-easter-sunday-bombings-should-be-kept-open-to-the-public-says-transparency-international-sri-lankatisl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=64396","title":{"rendered":"Despite Opposition by the Joint Opposition the Parliamentary Select Committee Hearings on Easter Sunday Bombings Should be Kept Open to the Public Says Transparency International Sri Lanka(TISL)."},"content":{"rendered":"

by Maneshka Borham<\/strong><\/p>\n

As members of the Joint Opposition continue to voice dissent over making Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) hearings on the Easter Sunday bombings open to the public, Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) has stressed that all similar committee hearings should by default be open to both the public and the media. \u201cTrue accountability in Sri Lanka can only be guaranteed by public scrutiny,\u201d TISL Executive Director Asoka Obeyesekere told the Sunday Observer. \u201cTISL believes all such hearings should be made public other than in exceptional cases,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The PSC was appointed on May 23 to probe and report to Parliament on the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks. For the first time in Sri Lanka\u2019s parliamentary history, it was decided that the proceedings of the PSC will be aired live in a bid to ensure transparency.<\/p>\n

During its first sitting, the Chief of National Intelligence (CNI) Sisira Mendis and Defence Secretary General (Rtd) Shantha Kottegoda testified before the Committee. However, opposition MPs backing Opposition Leader and former President Mahinda Rajapaksa alleged that the decision to allow journalists to be present and air live the proceedings would compromise national intelligence services by releasing sensitive information.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Obeysekere however countered that the level of trust on closed-door hearings do not generate the same level of public trust as those held in the public domain after which the public can hold those liable accountable. \u201cFor example, the Commission of Inquiry into the Central Bank Bond issue gained momentum due to the public and the media being given access to the proceedings\u201d he pointed out.<\/p>\n

He said open proceedings are an important step in building trust in the parliamentary system in the country. \u201cMost of the important work of Parliament happens within committees, and the public being able to see the policy work happening in Parliament is important\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile interest has built up due to the issue at hand, this may be an opportunity to introduce reforms on how parliamentary committees work\u201d he said adding that often MPs whose efforts are anchored in committees such as legislative oversight committees never gain public recognition for the contributions made.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn democracies, it is important that citizens understand the working of such committees,\u201d Obeysekere said, adding that there may be circumstances where information would need to be heard confidentially. \u201cBut this must be the exception as opposed to the norm\u201d he pointed out.<\/p>\n

Acting Chairman of the PSC Dr Jayampathi Wickramaratne at a press briefing on Friday assured that televising the proceedings has not compromised national security or the security of the intelligence services. According to him the PSC was formed under the principles of Right to Information ensuring the people\u2019s right to know. He said any sensitive information will not be aired and those testifying have been directed to request sittings in camera where necessary.<\/p>\n

PSC member, Prof. Ashu Marasinghe said the two officials who testified had been reassured that any matter they were not comfortable discussing in the presence of the media, could be withheld for a later date. Opposition politicians have no right to take away people\u2019s right to know, Prof. Marasinghe said adding that leaders should put the country above party politics.<\/p>\n

Courtesy:Sunday Observer<\/em><\/p>\n

Tweet<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Maneshka Borham As members of the Joint Opposition continue to voice dissent over making Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) hearings on the Easter Sunday bombings open to the public, Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) has stressed that all similar committee hearings should by default be open to both the public and the media. \u201cTrue accountability …<\/p>\n

Continue reading ‘Despite Opposition by the Joint Opposition the Parliamentary Select Committee Hearings on Easter Sunday Bombings Should be Kept Open to the Public Says Transparency International Sri Lanka(TISL).’ »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[12],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64396"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=64396"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64396\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":64397,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64396\/revisions\/64397"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=64396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=64396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=64396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}