The Catholic Church has urged Sri Lanka to
implement the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission's
recommendations promptly to avert a possible foreign intervention in the
country's sovereign affairs. Sri Lanka's Most Reverend Cardinal Dr. Malcolm Ranjith said the government should implement the LLRC recommendations as soon as possible and urged the government to not allow foreign countries to intervene in Sri Lanka's internal affairs.
Addressing media at an event at the Sri Lanka Bishop's conference in Borella today to launch a publication titled "Revival through Local Unity Alliance" by the Sri Lanka Catholic Bishop's Association. Rev. Cardinal Ranjith said uncles the government worked towards reconciliation and addressed allegations of war crimes during the war against Tamil Tigers, a foreign intervention is inevitable.
Cardinal Ranjith said the problems of the country should be resolved by "ourselves" through discussions. Problems could not be resolved by creating conflicts among ethnic groups, he emphasized.
"Foreigners should not tell us what to do... We are not a pack of fools," the Cardinal said.
"But if we do not resolve these issues, then we open ourselves to foreign intervention," he warned.
He stressed that the President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the leaders of the Tamil party Tamil National Alliance should hammer out the differences to find a solution to the ethnic issue.
He also noted that steps need to be taken to safeguard the independence of the judiciary.
The document presented by the Archdiocese of Colombo today contains a set of 42 proposals aiming to improve the moral wellbeing of the country.
It includes proposals concerning the constitution, independence of the judiciary, independent commissions and the confirmation of human rights in Sri Lanka.
The document also calls for a referendum apart from a two thirds majority to make any amendments to the Constitution which are necessary.