A special meeting of opposition party leaders was held at the Office of the Leader of the Opposition in Colombo on Thursday (23) to discuss the Government’s proposal to extend the retirement age of superior court judges.
Speaking to the media upon arriving for the meeting, former Minister Wimal Weerawansa said it was the Government’s actions that had brought opposition parties together for the discussion.
“It is the Government that has made us come to the Opposition Leader’s Office after quite some time. Otherwise, there had been no particular need for us to come together with the Opposition Leader for such a discussion,” he said.
Weerawansa also alleged that the Government had taken control of the country’s judiciary and was attempting to make it function according to its wishes.
He said restoring and safeguarding the independence of the judiciary was a common necessity for political forces across the ideological spectrum.
The meeting was convened at the invitation of Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa and was attended by several opposition representatives, including former President Ranil Wickremesinghe, Namal Rajapaksa, Dinesh Gunawardena and Dilith Jayaweera.
