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STATEMENT FROM THE NATIONAL CHRISTIAN COUNCIL OF SRI LANKA (NCCSL) ON THE CURRENT SITUATION

The out-break of COVID 19 pandemic, apart from claiming many human lives has also affected millions of people the world over causing much fear and chaos while disrupting the order of normal day to day life and causing massive damage to the global economy. Taking serious note of the growing threat of this dangerous health hazard, The National Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) as a faith-oriented national body wishes to make the following observations. All life is sacred because it is divine-oriented and as such The National Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) together with its constituent member churches and ecumenical organisations will continue to uphold and lift up our nation and all those who live here in ‘prayer’ for divine intervention and healing and we assure the President, the Prime Minister and the Cabinet and authorities of our fullest support and cooperation in this national effort.19th March 2020 Signed by:

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STATEMENT BY THE NATIONAL CHRISTIAN COUNCIL OF SRI LANKA (NCCSL) ON PRESIDENTIAL PARDON FOR CONVICT SERGEANT RATNAYAKE

It is with dismay that we the Church Leaders of The National Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) learnt of the presidential pardon given to former Army Sergeant Sunil Ratnayake who was sentenced in 2015 for the murder of eight Tamil civilians including a five- year- old child in Year 2000.The facts of the case are well known. Sergeant Ratnayake was one of the five defendants brought to trial. Four were released due to lack of sufficient evidence. Sgt. Ratnayake was convicted, appealed and his subsequent appeal to the Supreme Court was dismissed in April 2019 by a five-judge bench. In no way can it be said that there has been any miscarriage of justice. This decision taken at a time, when those held in remand due to their inability to post bail, or convicted and unable to pay their fines were to be released in a bid to lessen the threat of a COVID 19 breakout in prisons, is an affront to the Supreme Court, the High Court trial-at bar and the legal system of this country, as well as a blatant injustice to the civilian victims of this terrible crime and their families. We strongly condemn this divisive action, when the country needs to be united in spirit in the common task of combating the deadly epidemic that is upon us.05th April 2020 Signed by:

STATEMENT BY THE NATIONAL CHRISTIAN COUNCIL OF SRI LANKA (NCCSL) ON PRESIDENTIAL PARDON FOR CONVICT SERGEANT RATNAYAKE Read More »

STATEMENT BY NATIONAL CHRISTIAN COUNCIL HEADS OF CHURCHES ON THE CURRENT CRISIS

We, the Heads of Churches under the National Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) hereby appeal to His Excellency Gotabhaya Rajapakse to revoke the order dissolving parliament, thereby facilitating the postponement of the parliamentary election until September or October 2020, and to reconvene the existing parliament, thus averting a Constitutional crisis we can ill afford at this juncture. As a country still recovering from the effects of a 30-year war and with the memories of the attacks of Easter 2019 still fresh in our minds, we feel that a Constitutional crisis would be a tragedy for the Sri Lankan people, when it can easily be avoided. We wish publicly to express the real concerns of our faith community that the crisis created by the Covid19 pandemic may be used and abused to undermine the rule of law, resulting in a Constitutional crisis. Such a constitutional crisis would be a sure way of also exacerbating religious tensions in our country. The Parliamentary election was called early when the term of the Parliament elected in August 2015 will end on 01 September 2020. We believe that it makes sense to review that decision so that the election is held later this year, when the health crisis is not so severe. We think it is important that there is a consensus among medical specialists in the fields of public health and epidemiology about the safety of our citizens prior to any decision being taken to hold the next Parliamentary election. We welcome the decisions taken by the Elections Commission twice to postpone the election due to the threat of COVID19 virus spreading increasing during electioneering activity. We are also happy that the Election Commission is committed to review of the situation in consultation with health authorities and may further postpone the election. It is important to bear in mind that the country needs an election that is free and fair. This requires a level playing field for all parties and their candidates to campaign and have equitable access to the media. This is not possible when there is a curfew or a lockdown. Until the election is held the country also needs a legislature (Parliament) to ensure that all three organs of government discharge their duties during the crisis, as required by the Constitution. Whilst expressing our gratitude to the Government for its handling of the public health crisis, and also saluting the healthcare professionals and the law enforcement officers who have given of themselves selflessly and sacrificially at this difficult time, we have also noted with concern the increased militarisation to be seen all around the civil life of our country. There is also a danger that relief measures could be politicised, with free relief packages and other privileges being given to some sections of the community by the government in power. Needless to say, uninterrupted freedom for all stakeholders is a sine qua non to a free and fair election. We expect the Government to respond to the public health crisis in a manner that is consistent with the Constitution and the rule of law, thus ensuring that the necessary checks and balances are in effect. We therefore appeal to you to revoke the order dissolving parliament, and to postpone our parliamentary elections until September or October 2020, reconvene the existing parliament, and avert the dangers of a Constitutional crisis our citizens can ill afford at this time.25th April 2020 Signed by: Download the Sinhala Statement here Download the Tamil Statement here

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NCCSL’s Statement on the “Calling to Glory” of Rev. Fr. Earnest Poruthota

It is with a sense of sorrow and joy in Christ, The National Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) receives the news of the ‘Calling to Glory’ of Rev. Fr. Earnest Poruthota.Rev. Fr. Raymond Earnest Alexandra Poruthota, as a magnanimous disciple of Christ engaged in spreading the love of God in an encouraging and guiding spirit leading all those he acquainted with towards greater achievements in the mission of the God.As an affable and inspiring servant of Christ, Fr. Poruthota was one who made immense contributions displaying divine gifts bestowed upon him in the field of communication and cinema.The ‘calling to rest’ of Fr. Paruthota is a great loss to the Church, and it is our hope that his inspired leadership, guiding principles and vision will continue to prevail and hold firm in the Church and the Country as a whole.May he rest in peace and rise in glory.17th June 2020 Signed by:Constituent Churches and Ecumenical Organisations Associates Churches and Ecumenical Organisations

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STATEMENT BY NATIONAL CHRISTIAN COUNCIL OF SRI LANKA ON THE 20th AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION

The National Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) expresses its deep concern about the manner in which the 20th Amendment to the Constitution is sought to be introduced and several substantive provisions of the amendment itself. THE PROCESS The Government has decided to table the 20th Amendment Bill while also announcing that changes will be made to the Bill during the committee stage process in Parliament. It has not stated what changes will be made. Since the Constitution only provides a brief period for judicial review of Bills and prohibits post enactment judicial review, committee stage amendments will in effect be immune from both public and judicial scrutiny before they are adopted. This violates basic features of transparency, accountability and constitutionalism and betrays the promise made by several Government ministers that the public will be informed and consulted before constitutional amendments were introduced. THE SUBSTANCE The 20th Amendment Bill seeks to repeal many features of the 19th Amendment. Not all of the !9th Amendment’s features were flawed. The positive features should be retained. The 20th Amendment also disregards the recommendations made since the mid-1980s in favour of the importance of de-politicising key democratic institutions notably by the Presidential Commission on Youth Unrest (1990) and the concerted campaign since the constitution was adopted in 1978, led by a wide cross section of political forces and civil society groups, to introduce greater checks and balances on the office of the executive presidency by curtailing the President’s wide powers of appointment.We urge the government to review the following aspects of the 20th Amendment: CONCLUSION We call upon the Government to preserve those parts of the 19th Amendment that promote the independence of key institutions and accountable governance. Since one of the main objectives of a constitution is to protect and empower the people vis-a vis the government, all amendments to the 20th Amendment should be made accessible to the public so that their views can be considered before the Amendment is debated in Parliament. ‘But speaking the truth in love, may grow up to Him in all things;which is the Head, even Christ’(Eph.4:15) Signed: 29th September 2020 Constituent Churches Member Ecumenical Organisations Associate Member Churches and Ecumenical Organisations Download the Sinhala statement here Download the Tamil statement here

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PRESS CONFERENCE – THURSDAY 06 MAY 2021 @ 10.30 AM CALL TO THE NATION ON THE ‘COVID CRISIS’

We meet at a critical juncture of human calamity of the pandemic – COVID 19; the global effects there-to and the raising of its head yet again in our own land. It is in the midst of this national crisis and the increasing spread of this killer virus with the devastating impact on the country as a whole that the National Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL); whilst offering its condolences to the bereaved families takes this opportunity to express its solidarity with the people of our land, comes forward as a responsible Body in Christ to support, cooperate and address the curtailing of the transmission of the virus. First and foremost, we call upon all people in our nation to strictly adhere to the instructions and stipulated guidelines issues by the Health Authorities in our daily life and work. We are conscious of the National Vaccination Programme, and are prepared where ever possible upon request to open our churches and centers to support this effort. In event of a need to accommodate people for ‘quarantine’, we can, following a request make available facilities that come under our purview. Acknowledging the impact on the daily wage earners subject to ‘quarantine measures’, and given the vulnerability of economic constraints of the families left behind, we can look into the possibility of offering basic financial support in such situations, depending on the needs there-to. The number of Sri Lankans who are unable to return is a concern to us and the fact that of affordable facilities is an issue. We call upon all Sri Lankans and especially all Christians to rally round with all organizations that are working to bring back these people who once provided to keep our economy afloat. In conclusion we all call upon our faithful to engage in collective prayers, lifting up our land, along with other nations; especially our immediate neighbor, India, for the much -needed healing and restoration of life and work. Signed: Download the Sinhala Statement here Download the Tamil Statement here

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Prayers to be offered – In remembrance of the War Victims

The National Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) takes note of the ‘Call to Prayer’ by the Roman Catholic Bishop’s Council for North and East, scheduled for Tuesday 18 May 2021 in Remembrance of the War Victims. Acknowledging the ‘sanctity of life’, we call upon our membership to offer prayers for all lives lost in the nearly three decades of war and to uphold the families of the departed for divine healing and restoration of life. In engaging with the ‘call to prayer’; we also caution our clergy and the people to be mindful to abide with the COVID restrictions on ‘gatherings’ and for use of ‘virtual technology’ for connecting with each other for Prayers.   The National  Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL)

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ON THE CURRENT NATIONAL SITUATION BY THE HEADS OF CHURCHES OF THE NATIONAL CHRISTIAN COUNCIL OF SRI LANKA (NCCSL) June 2021

The worsening COVID-19 pandemic situation and related deterioration of socio- economic conditions, along with mounting ecological calamities, has prompted the Churches affiliated with the National Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) to alert the nation and its political leadership to the need to meet the challenge for proper governance and economic and environmental management to resolve the worsening public health crisis.Despite our country possessing many advantages such as a literate society, a comprehensive and extensive public health system, a middle-income country status, and a mass media system that reaches across our island home, after more than a year since the pandemic struck in February 2020, we remain a nation lacking a suitably designed public health response. Our well-staffed and highly skilled health infrastructure does not seem to be at the centre of the pandemic response. Unlike any other country in South Asia, our pandemic response mechanisms and even important parts of our public administration also seem to be dominated by ex-military personnel many of whom lack the relevant expertise for the task. We are a nation long known to have provided the world with quality medical personnel, yet they are not adequately at the helm to meet this health crisis. There should be justice with regard to access to vaccines both locally and internationally. We are concerned at the absence of a rational policy based on equality and devoid of political favouritism with respect to the vaccination of people in the country. We also deplore the vaccine apartheid between the global north and south in the distribution of vaccines and call upon political leaders and church leaders in the developed world to ensure that such injustice and discrimination is ended forthwith. It is not surprising, therefore, that the nation must suffer an increasing trend of ad hoc, autocratic and non-consultative actions of governance across the gamut of national affairs. This has resulted in such anomalous governmental behaviour such as: use of counter-insurgency and sedition mechanisms against civil activists, intellectuals and artistes; attempts to curtail the work of religious and social service organisations; a mounting death toll of suspects in police custody, a deplorable lack of commitment in the investigations into the Easter Sunday tragedy, and the reversal of numerous ongoing judicial actions that seek to redress large scale plunder, maladministration and other mis-governance, among other serious anomalies not expected of a country committed to freedom and the Rule of Law. Meanwhile we note that various less-advantaged social sectors like the urban and rural poor, the agricultural and plantation community and the fishing community all face deteriorating livelihood conditions arising out of the profound failure to manage the health crisis. The fishing community received another serious blow by the incompetence demonstrated in handling the stricken X-press Pearl and the ensuing calamitous environmental consequences. We call for a credible and independent inquiry into how such a crisis could have occurred. We are disturbed that even as we must overcome these calamities, the governmental leadership seems more focused on undermining democratic processes, stifling dissent and rushing through ill-conceived legislation such as the Port City Commission Bill that may endanger national sovereignty and long- term economic prosperity. The nation and its collective leadership must heed the rising call by our spiritual leaderships to rise up and focus on harnessing our best resources and attributes to respond to the crises rather than indulging in autocratic exercises that only serve further to emasculate our island civilisation.The National Christian Council of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) 9th June 2021 Download Sinhala Statement here Download Tamil Statement here

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Condolence Message Reverend Vernon Perera

The National Christian Council of Sri Lanka received the information about the ‘calling to glory’ of Rev Vernon Perera with profound shock and sadness. We join the family in mourning as we remember our brother with warmth, love and respect. Kindly accept our heartfelt condolences. The National Christian Council of Sri Lanka remembers Rev Vernon Perera as a committed minister of the gospel who wholeheartedly worked for the growth of the Kingdom of God. He was friendly and supportive of the ecumenical work of the Council. There is no doubt in our hearts that the departure of Rev Vernon Perera is painful; however are confident that God has given Rev Vernon Perera rest from the labours of this life. May the peace of God, which is beyond comprehension, be with you always till the end of time. Rev. Maxwell Doss General Secretary

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