Sri Lanka passes 22nd Amendment, raising judges' retirement age

Sri Lanka on Friday adopted the controversial 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, which raises the retirement age of judges, despite strong protests from the opposition. The amendment was passed with a two-thirds majority after a two-day debate in Parliament.

The change increases the retirement age of Supreme Court judges from 65 to 67 years and that of Court of Appeal judges from 63 to 65. The move has triggered criticism from opposition parties and the Bar Association of Sri Lanka, who have argued for months that it would undermine judicial independence.

The amendment was approved with 158 members voting in favour and 63 against. Speaking for the government, senior minister Bimal Ratnayake said the amendment was only aimed at reforming the judiciary and ensuring the swift delivery of justice. He said, "This is not an amendment to extend the life of parliament or to extend the terms of presidents as happened before." Ratnayake added, "We do not want this to keep a stronghold of government as falsely accused by the opposition."

Sri Lanka has a judicial backlog of an estimated 1.1 million cases. However, the main opposition leader Sajith Premadasa said the amendment was clearly intended to undermine the independence of the judiciary. "This would put democracy seriously under threat," Premadasa said. Members of the main opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya attended Parliament in black attire to protest against the move.

The amendment was adopted despite months-long protests by opposition parties and the Bar Association of Sri Lanka. The opposition also challenged the government to hold a referendum to enact the amendment. According to several opposition figures, petitions filed in the Supreme Court argued that the 22nd Amendment infringes Article 3 of the Constitution, which relates to the sovereignty of the people, and therefore requires approval through a nationwide referendum in addition to a two-thirds majority in Parliament.

With the amendment now passed, Sri Lanka has changed the retirement age for judges even as the government says the measure is meant to speed up justice delivery and the opposition maintains that it threatens judicial independence and democracy.