Sri Lanka: priests, nuns protest proposed constitutional change
September 09, 2010
Priests and nuns demonstrated in Sri Lanka’s capital on September 8 against a proposed constitutional amendment that would abolish presidential term limits, allowing President Mahinda Rajapaksa to seek a third term in office.
“In Colombo, the situation is tense and there are massive marches and demonstrations,” said Father Srian Ranesinghe, OMI. “Civil society groups are up in arms over what is a matter of civil rights and democracy. Even religious leaders have raised their voices in declaring their disapproval of the sudden change to the Constitution.”
The National Catholic Social Communication Center called upon the nation’s lawmakers to maintain the “democracy, transparency, and credibility of the different political and social institutions,” adding, “We call upon our Christian community to pray very specially for our country.”
7% of Sri Lanka's 20.9 million people are Catholic, according to Vatican statistics. 69% are Buddhist, 8% are Muslim, and 7% are Hindu.
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Further information:
- Civil society groups say “no” to Constitution changes (Fides)
- Christians join protest over constitution change (UCAN)
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