Ministry of Justice Law Reforms: Clarifying and updating law and finding solutions, or creating more problems and confusion?

By Kalyananda Tiranagama

Executive Director

Lawyers for Human Rights and Development

As reported by the media, over the past one year and more, addressing meetings at various places of lawyers, Judges and public officials and the media, Minister of Justice Ali Sabry, PC has spoken of steps taken by him to modernise the law by reforming and amending outdated laws.

During a visit to the new courts complex building at the Beligaha Junction, Galle on December 23, 2020, and addressing the media the Minister said, ‘To expedite justice process we have made a lot of efforts to enact new laws amending the outdated laws. Within the last three months, we have amended 37 laws and 30 more new laws to be enacted in the coming months.’

Commencing work at the Ministry of Justice for the New Year on 01 January, 2021, the Minister said, ‘After 1947 our legal system has not been updated. Within the last three months we have amended 37 laws. With these amendments unprecedented relief will be granted to the people through courts.

One can get an idea as to how these legal reforms are done from the following passages in a full page advertisement published by the Ministry in all the newspapers in all three languages on January 25, 2021 under the title – Ministry of Justice – Overview of Projected Reforms and Development:

C. i. Increase in Budget allocation

– The Ministry of Justice’s standard Budget allocation over the years has been Rs. 4,500 million

– The government in 2021, allocated an unprecedented sum of Rs. 20,000 million to the justice sector for infrastructure development and digitalisation amongst other key improvements. This reflects the largest ever commitment by a govt in the history of the country towards a complete reform and development of the justice sector.

iii. Special Project Unit of the Ministry of Justice

* The creation of five sub-committees was the brainchild of Mohamed Ali Sabry PC, the Minister of Justice. One of his earliest tasks after taking office was the submission of a comprehensive Cabinet Memorandum setting out the issues clearly and detailing a two year plan to fix laws delays.

* It provides for the creation of five sub-committees headed by dynamic lawyers from the private bar who would work together to come up with a complete solution to the problem. Cabinet Memorandum was approved by the Cabinet, thus giving the Ministry of Justice the green light to go ahead with the plan.

* The Cabinet has allocated an impressive expanse of resources for this project – a full-blown secretariat, staff and all the facilities necessary for the sub-committees to carry out their objective.

* This is the first time that the state has fully backed such a mammoth endeavour to reform the law.

* The terms of reference are precise and reflect a very clear overall plan.

* The five sub-Committees are 1. Infrastructure Development 2. Digitalization and Court Automation 3. Criminal Law Reforms 4. Civil Law Reforms 5. Commercial Law Reforms

As mentioned in this advertisement itself, the Budget allocation of the Ministry has been increased five times from Rs. 4,500 million to Rs. 20,000 million. It is the largest ever commitment by a government in the history of the country for judicial and legal reforms. It is a reflection of the importance the government has attached to legal and judicial reforms expected by the people over decades.

It is a mammoth endeavour to reform the law entrusted to five sub-committees headed by dynamic lawyers from the private bar. The creation of five sub-committees was the brainchild of the Minister. The terms of reference are precise and reflect a very clear overall plan.

As disclosed by the Minister in his public announcements, the number of laws identified for reforms and amendment is going up from month to month. Addressing a meeting at Medawachchiya on 27 October, 2021, the Minister has said that Cabinet had received suggestions for amending 60 laws and a lot of laws would be amended in the next six – 12 months. There are many antiquated laws that were adversely affecting the people. Some of these obstruct development and they needed to be amended.

In an interview with The Sunday Divaina newspaper of 28 November 2021, the Minister stated that since he assumed duties as the Minister of Justice, 14 months ago, steps had been taken to amend 84 laws, already 10 amended, about 20 had been submitted to the Cabinet for approval and about another 30 sent to the Legal Draftsman. Things have never moved so fast.

On the occasion of the opening of the Debt Conciliation Board Office at Gampaha on 29 December 2021, the Minister said that during the last one year 10 new laws enacted reforming outdated laws and steps were being taken to amend 98 laws in the coming days.

In our laws, there are many provisions that are outdated and lack clarity, resulting in injustice or inconsistent with generally accepted norms of human rights, or obstructing the smooth and effective implementation of the law. There are many issues encountered in the administration of criminal justice that need to be addressed, but have remained unaddressed for decades without required legal provisions to address them. There are many areas where the law needs to be further strengthened and improved to address issues encountered in emerging situations.

With these public utterances of the Minister, the legal fraternity and the people of the country undoubtedly expected the Ministry to identify not only a few outdated expressions in the law but also main problem areas and lacunae in the law encountered by the people in their search for justice and by the law enforcement authorities and that need to be urgently addressed with reforms required for smooth and effective implementation. What the country needs is substantial legal reforms aimed at addressing the issues that frequently come up in the administration of justice and enforcement of the law, and not some superficial or ornamental amendments.

The following 30 Acts have been passed by Parliament in 2021. Out of them 23 are Amendments brought to existing Acts and 7 (shown in bold letters) are newly enacted laws. The first 8 Amendment Acts were passed in the first week of January, receiving the endorsement of the Speaker on January 18, 2021.

1.

Shop and Office Employees (Regulation of Employment and Remuneration) (Amendment) Act No. 1 of 2021 – (January 18, 2021)

2.

Employment of Women. Young Persons and Children (Amendment) Act No. 2 of 2021 – (January 18, 2021)

3.

Minimum Wages (Indian Labour) (Amendment) Act No. 3 of 2021 – (January 18, 2021)

4.

Factories (Amendment) Act No. 4 of 2021 – (January 18, 2021)

5.

Penal Code (Amendment) Act No. 5 of 2021 – (January 18, 2021)

6.

Evidence (Amendment) Act No. 6 of 2021 – (January 18, 2021)

7.

Bail (Amendment) Act No. 7 of 2021 – (January 18, 2021)

8.

Intellectual Property (Amendment) Act No. 8 of 2021 – (January 18, 2021)

9.

Value Added Tax (Amendment) Act No. 9 of 2021 – (May 13, 2021)

10.

Inland Revenue (Amendment) Act No. 10 of 2021 – (May 13, 2021)

11.

Colombo Port City Economic Commission Act No. 11 of 2021- ( May 27, 2021)

12.

Fiscal Management (Responsibility) (Amendment) Act No. 12 of 2021 (June 14, 2021)

13.

Sri Lanka Land Development Corporation (Amendment) Act No. 13 of 2021 (June 30, 2021)

14.

Code of Criminal Procedure. (Amendment) Act No. 14 of 2021 (July 15, 2021)

15.

Torture Convention (Amendment) Act No. 15 of 2021 – (July 15, 2021)

16. National Minimum Wage of Workers (Amendment) Act No. 16 of 2021 (August 16, 2021)

17. Coronavirus Disease (Covid-19) (Temporary Provisions) Act No. 17 of 2021 – (August 23, 2021)

18.

Finance Act No 18 of 2021 (September 15, 2021)

19. Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka Act No. 19 of 2021 – (September 21, 2021)

20. Consumer Affairs Authority (Amendment) Act No. 20 of 2021 – (September 22, 2021)

21.

Petroleum Resources Act No. 21 of 2021

22.

Registration of Electors (Amendment) Act No. 22 of 2021

23.

Employees Provident Fund (Amendment) Act No. 23 of 2021

24.

Youthful Offenders (Training Schools) (Amendment) Act No. 24 of 2021 (2021. 10. 21)

25.

Penal Code (Amendment) Act No. 25 of 2021

26.

Appropriation (Amendment) Act No. 26 of 2021

27.

Immigrants and Emigrants (Amendment) Act No. 27 of 2021 – (12/11/2021)

28

. Minimum Retirement Age of Workers Act No. 28 of 2021

29

. Termination of Employment of Workmen (Special Provisions) (Amendment) Act No. 29 of 2021 – (17/11/2021)

30.

Appropriation Act No. 30 of 2021

However, when one examines the above amendments, it appears that some of them are nominal and superficial, some are meaningless, redundant and ridiculous, and in some others only some marginal issues are touched, ignoring the real ones that need to be urgently addressed, especially in relation to the administration of criminal justice. Some other amendments are totally unnecessary and impracticable and create unnecessary problems.

The first four amendments in the list of Acts amended relate to the increase of the minimum age of employment of children from 14 years to 16 years and the definition of the words, ‘child’ and ‘young person’. The definition of the word ‘child’ has been amended to mean ‘a person under the age of 16 years’ and the definition of the word ‘young person’ has been amended to mean ‘a person who has attained the age of 16 years, but is under the age of 18 years’. All these 4 Acts have been amended by replacing the phrases – ‘a person under the age of 16 years’ with the word ‘child’; ‘a person who has attained the age of 16 years, but is under the age of 18 years’ with the words ‘young person’ and ’14 years’ with ’16 years’ in the relevant sections in the Acts. Though it is a simple, clerical job without requiring much knowledge of law, it is undoubtedly a salutary step taken to protect the interests of children belonging to the age group of 14 – 16 years.

(To be continued)