[xtypo_dropcap]T[/xtypo_dropcap]he Sri Lankan Parliament Wednesday, voted in favor of a constitutional amendment that would allow President Mahinda Rajapaksa to seek unlimited terms in office and extend his powers significantly.
Parliament voted 161 to 17 for the amendment while the main opposition party, the United National Party, boycotted the vote.
The amendment lifts the constitutional limit of two presidential terms, and besides being able to run again for president in 2016, the amendment also grants Rajapaksa the power to appoint top seats in the “judiciary, police, election commission, and central bank,” according to AFP.
Critics say the amendment ends democracy. “History has shown us too much power centered on one individual is bad for good governance,” said an opposition lawmaker and human rights lawyer M. A. Sumanthiran, quoted by AFP.
