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Proposed Delimitation Commission Act Policy Paper

Proposed Delimitation Commission Act

Policy Paper

 

1.     Introduction

Following the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, a three-member Delimitation Commission (Commission) was appointed on 13 November 2015 under Article 41B and 95(1) of the Constitution. The present Constitution, however, does not specify a clear mandate for the Commission, nor its powers and functions.

Since their appointment, the members of the Commission have been engaged in surveying the literature on global experiences in delimitation and studying the history of and rationale for previous delimitation work in Sri Lanka in preparation for its substantive work. During this exercise, the Commission was made aware that, at different points in time in the past, separate bodies had been assigned the responsibility for delimitation of Parliamentary Constituencies, Local Government areas and Public Administration areas, entirely unrelated to each other.

 

Based on their findings, the Commission felt the need to share its thoughts and observations on several policy matters concerning the subject of delimitation.  This paper is written and presented with that objective.  The paper first reviews the present situation and the policies that were used in all past delimitation exercises in Sri Lanka. The paper then shares the Commission’s views on the need for having a broad based over-arching policy in place for future delimitation. Finally, the document makes recommendations on how this is to be achieved and conveys the advantages in doing so.

 

2.   History of Boundary Delimitation for Parliamentary Elections in Post-Independent Sri Lanka

Six Delimitation Commissions were appointed since the Soulbury Constitution, in 1946, 1953 (terminated before its conclusion), 1959, 1976, 1981 and 1988 (proposals not implemented). These Delimitation Commissions were constituted for a specified period to redraw the boundaries of electoral districts for Parliamentary Elections. These Commissions were guided by a number of principles enshrined in the Constitution or its amendments. When the specified duty was over, the services of these Delimitation Commissions were terminated. In addition to this, there are several Legislative enactments and procedures in Sri Lanka which cater to different forms of delimitation at other electoral and administrative levels.

 

3.     Current Position and Policies Adopted

The Constitution of Sri Lanka and its amendments have guided the delimitation exercises that the country has adopted thus far.  Accordingly, delimitating electoral boundaries was done at different levels based on specific constitutional provisions and amendments.  Furthermore, in the past, at different points in time, separate bodies had been assigned the responsibility for delimitation of Parliamentary Constituencies, Local Government areas and Public Administration areas.  To learn from the past, it would be good to illustrate delimitation exercises that have been carried out at different levels in the country.

3.1  Local Authorities’ Electoral Boundaries:

Every Municipality (Municipal Council), town (Urban Council) or Pradeshiya Sabha area is an electoral area for the purpose of Local Government Elections. Until 2012, all Local Government Authorities’ elections were based on the proportional representation system by using the number of registered electors. This was the responsibility of the Commissioner of Elections. Hence, the redrawing the boundaries of electoral areas was not required and no Delimitation Committee was established for delimiting electoral boundaries for Local Authorities’ constituencies until 2012.

Under the provisions of the Local Authorities Elections (Amendment) Act, No 22 of 2012, the government introduced a mixed election system based on the first past the post system for the Local Government election and a National Delimitation Committee(Committee) consisting of five persons was appointed in 2012 to work on this. The mandate of the Committee is to make recommendations to the Minister of Local Government and Provincial Councils to divide each local authority area into wards based on the criteria given in the Act. The National Delimitation Committee‘s report was gazetted by the President in August, 2015.  In November, 2015, the Minister of Provincial Councils and Local Government appointed a Delimitation Review Committee to look into the appeals in respect of the recommendations made by the National Delimitation Committee on Local Government Councils. The Delimitation Review Committee completed the delimitation process and the gazette was published. 

Currently, for the appointment of a Delimitation Committee (not Commission) for the establishment of new Local Authorities, gazetting of the Local Authorities which have already been established,  upgrading Local Authorities and revision of existing Local Authorities, altering and redefining the limits of a Local Authority’s area, the responsibility falls on  the Minister of Local Government and Provincial Councils to prepare a memorandum to submit to Cabinet for approval to proceed with such work.

3.2 Provincial Councils’ Electoral Boundaries.

The number of members to be elected from each administrative district of a province to the Provincial Council established for that province is currently determined by the Commissioner of Elections on the basis mentioned in the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. As it is based on the proportional representation system and each administrative district is taken as an electoral district, redrawing the boundaries of such electoral districts is not required. Hence, no Delimitation Committee or Commission has been established for delimiting electoral boundaries for Provincial Council constituencies.

3.3 Provincial and Administrative District Boundaries

Provinces and Administrative Districts and their boundary limits are clearly stated in the Constitution of Sri Lanka and/ or Act of Administrative Districts. The limits of an Administrative District or a Province may be altered/amended only by a resolution passed by Parliament and/or amendments to the Constitution. If the necessity arises to change or alter the boundary, the Minister for Home Affairs takes necessary steps to appoint a Delimitation Committee (not Commission) to undertake boundary delimitation with the approval Parliament.

3.4 Divisional Secretariat Division and Grama Niladhari Division Boundaries

Currently, for the appointment of a Delimitation Committee (not Commission) for the boundary establishment of new Divisional Secretariat Divisions, or for gazetting of the Divisional Secretariat Divisions which have already been established, or for the establishment of new Grama Niladhari Divisions or the revision of existing Grama Niladhari Divisions, the responsibility falls on the Minister of Home affairs to prepare a memorandum to submit to Cabinet for approval to proceed with such work.

3.5 Boundaries for State Services

Besides the delimitation work for electoral and administrative boundaries, the delimitation and demarcation of service areas for all state services (Agrarian, Education, Health, Forestry, Irrigation, Judicial, Police, etc.) is undertaken by the relevant service agencies, independent of any consistent set of policies or rules with regard to the needs of the population (citizens) or land (environment).

 3.6 Outcomes of the Above

At present, the Parliamentary system has 160 polling divisions, while there are 336 Local Government Authorities. At the same time, the Public Administration System has 14,021 Grama Niladhari Divisions (GNDs) which combine into 331 Divisional Secretariats (DSs) in 25 Districts. In key state service areas, there are 340 Medical Officers of Health (MOH) areas, 311 Educational Divisions and 439 Police areas, to mention a few, with some of these service areas cutting across GND and DS geographical boundaries. Absence of harmonious, hierarchical spatial units in electoral, administrative and service delivery boundaries has affected development activities and co-ordination among Ministries, government departments and other state actors. In addition, there is considerable variation among the same tier administrative divisions. For example, at the smallest Public Administration unit, the GND, level, the Mattakuliya GND covered a population of  28,000in an area of 2 sq.km, while Panama South GND had 1,209 persons in an area of 560 sq km and several GNDs had less than 100 persons (Census of Population and Housing 2012).

 The system of naming (nomenclature) used by different departments and state services for referring to an administrative area has also created confusion among the public as well as administrators, as uniform criteria are not followed by Government Departments, Semi-Government Boards and other State Institutions. For example, the Elections Commission refers to 160 Electoral Districts, whereas in the Public Administration System, there are 25 Districts, each of which covers several Electoral Districts, thousands of square kilometers and is next in size to the Province.

It is seen that under the current system, separate bodies had been assigned the responsibility for delimitation of Parliamentary Constituencies, Local Government areas, Public Administration areas and state service delivery areas. This has led to inconsistencies and inefficiencies with regard tothe collection and availability of required information for the elected representation of the citizenry at different levels,as well as with regard to public administration and the delivery of state services.

 

4       Delimitation Policy for the Present and for the Future

It is clear that the present fragmented policy on delimitation has to be changed to suit the national need of the day.

The current situation indicates that the delimitation work required for elected bodies and administrative areas demands a well-organized, permanent structure which functions within a framework underpinned by a well-established set of principles that would need review and revision from time to time. As the demography of the country is constantly changing, creating, amalgamating and upgrading Parliamentary electorates and Local Authorities’ (Municipal Councils, Urban Councils and Pradeshiya Sabhas) areas, after every national population census, is a continuous process. At present, a large number of requests for new local authorities’ status are pending decisions at the Ministry of Provincial Councils and Local Government. The present practice is that the Government (Minister) appoints a Committee with one or more members to study each request. If all such issues are assigned to a single independent Delimitation Commission, a consistent yardstick can be established within a uniform framework and set of principles. 

 

Besides the delimitation work for elected bodies, the delimitation and demarcation of consistent boundaries for Public Administration and all state services (Agrarian, Education, Forestry, Health, Irrigation, Judicial, Police, etc.) requires urgent attention.

 

5       Recommendations

Against this background the Commission wishes to put forward a proposal to the Government to have ONE Delimitation Commission as the legal authority to undertake all delimitation work related to elected bodies- Parliament, Provincial Councils and Local Government Authorities-, as well as the delimitation and demarcation of consistent geographical boundaries for Public Administration and all other state services, within a uniform framework and set of principles.

 

The framework and principles are listed below:

 

5.1  Appointment of ONE Independent Commission responsible for the subject of Delimitation: There shall be a Delimitation Commission appointed under the Constitution to conduct boundary delimitation as mandated by the Constitution in an independent, ethical, equitable, efficient, transparent and credible manner and in accordance with the Law (Delimitation Act).

 

5.2  Objective of Delimitation: The Delimitation Commission shall ensure that the boundaries of electoral or any other assigned administrative or service delivery geographical units are drawn in such a way as to achieve equitable representation for each vote or citizen to the greatest degree possible, to ensure effective safeguarding of the democratic rights of the people and of the environment, which shall be laid out in the Delimitation Act.

 

5.3  Principles for Delimitation to Achieve Objective: In the determination of geographical boundaries, the Delimitation Commission shall take into consideration the following factors: -

a)     Total Population within such boundaries, considering the needs of youth and voting age population (Registered Voter population????)

b)     Total Land within such boundaries, considering area, terrain and the need to safeguard, land, water and forest resources.

 

5.4  Time Frame for Delimitation: Within 2 years of the completion of a national population census, the Delimitation Commission shall subject such electoral geographical boundaries to review and revision on the basis of changes in population patterns. Any such basis and revision shall transparently be made available to the public, as specified in the Delimitation Act.

 

5.5  Boundary delimitation for National, Provincial and local government elections: –the geographical boundaries for Parliamentary Electorates, Provincial Councils and Local Government Authorities (, MCs, UCs and Pradeshiya Sabha)shall be determined by the Delimitation Commission in accordance with the principles and criteria set out in the Delimitation Act.

 

5.6  Boundary Delimitation of Provinces and Administrative Districts:If and when Parliament decrees that the necessity has arisen to change or alter the boundary of any Province or Administrative District, on the basis of changes in population patterns or environmental concerns,this boundary delimitation to be assigned to Delimitation Commission with the approval of Parliament. Any such basis and revision shall transparently be made available to the public, as specified in the Delimitation Act.

 

5.7  Boundary Delimitationfor Public Administration: – For the establishment of the boundaries of new Divisional Secretariats (DSs), revision of the boundaries of existing DSs, establishment of the boundaries of new Grama Niladhari Divisions (GNDs) and revision of the boundaries of existing Grama Niladhari Divisions, the respective Ministry shall prepare a memorandum to submit to Cabinet for approval to proceed with such work through the Delimitation Commission. The basis of any such revision shall transparently be made available to the public, as specified in the Delimitation Act.

 

5.8  Boundary Delimitation for Provision of Key State Services: - The geographical boundaries for provision of all key state services shall be determined by the Delimitation Commission in accordance with the principles and criteria set out in the Delimitation Act. For the establishment of the boundaries of new service areas or revision of the boundaries of existing service areas in any subject, the respective Ministry in charge of such subject shall prepare a memorandum to submit to Cabinet for approval to proceed with such work through the Delimitation Commission. The basis of any such change shall transparently be made available to the public, as specified in the Delimitation Act.

 

6.     Conclusion

Considering the above, it is recommended that the powers and functions of a single Delimitation Commission be widened to cover all areas requiring delimitation by an Act of Parliament. The benefits would be:

 

6.1  One body is answerable to the Public and to the Parliament.

6.2  A common national policy on delimitation could be adopted.

6.3  Consistent and uniform patterns of delimitation could be established.

6.4  The cost of delimitation work will be significantly reduced.

6.5  A permanent institutional structure for delimitation will allow for greater efficiency with a trained body of staff who have specialist knowledge and expertise in delimitation work.

6.6  This institutional structure can support the resolution of internal boundary disputes among national, provincial and local elected bodies, public administration and state service delivery geographical units.

 






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