Ceylon’s break
(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright) COLOMBO, Dec. 30. A draft Constitution to sever all constitutional ties with the British Crown and to declare Ceylon an independent republic was
presented to the Constituent Assembly in Colombo today.
The Minister of Constitutional Affairs (Dr Colwin Reginald de Silva) presented the 76-page draft, which he said, was pledged to realise the objectives of Socialist democracy, including the the fundamental rights of all citizens.
The draft has already been approved by the Cabinet of the Prime Minister (Mrs Ba»daranaike).
The document provides for a unicameral (single House) legislature which would be the supreme instrument of State power. It does not provide for the separation of powers. Ceylon has been a dominion within the British Commonwealth since her independence in 1948. The House of Representatives, among the 157 members of which Mrs Bandaranaike’s Government has a large majority, was elected in May of last year, and has been sitting as a Constituent Assembly to prepare a new Constitution since July, 1970.
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Bibliographic details
Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32803, 31 December 1971, Page 13
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164Ceylon’s break Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32803, 31 December 1971, Page 13
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