Reforming Sri Lankan Presidentialism

Reforming Sri Lankan Presidentialism – Provenance, Problems and Prospects is a collection of scholarly essays edited by Asanga Welikala.

Balavannama by Chandraguptha Thenuwara (2014)

Download the entire contents of the book, by Volume or by individual contribution, here.

The cover of the book, printed in two Volumes, is reproduced below.

Download the complete Volume 1 here, and Volume 2 here. Individual chapters and contributions can be downloaded as PDFs below.

List of Contributors
Preface – Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu
Editor’s Introduction – Asanga Welikala
Cover Illustration – Chandraguptha Thenuwara

Volume 1

Part I – The Sri Lankan Presidency: Institutional Characteristics

  1. Bonapartism and the Anglo-American Constitutional Tradition in Sri Lanka: Reassessing the 1978 Constitution – Radhika Coomaraswamy
  2. Parliament in a Presidential System – Reeza Hameed
  3. The Judiciary under the 1978 Constitution – Nihal Jayawickrama
  4. The Presidency and the Supreme Court: The Constitutional Jurisprudence of Presidential Powers under the 1978 Constitution – Sachintha Dias
  5. The Executive Presidency and Immunity from Suit: Article 35 as Outlier – Niran Anketell
  6. An Eager Embrace: Emergency Rule and Authoritarianism in Republican Sri Lanka – Deepika Udagama
  7. Human Rights and the 1978 Constitution – Laksiri Fernando
  8. The Executive and the Shadow State in Sri Lanka – Ambika Satkunanathan

Part II – Policy Rationales for Presidentialism: The Management of Pluralism and Economic Development

9. The Devolution of Power and the Executive Presidency – Luwie Ganeshathasan

10. Flawed Expectations: The Executive Presidency, Resolving the National Question, and Tamils – Kumaravadivel Guruparan

11. Presidentialism, the 1978 Constitution, and the Muslims – A.M. Faaiz

12. Economic Development and the Executive Presidency – Rajesh Venugopal

Part III – Kingship and Presidentialism: Historical Continuities between Past and Present

13. Nation, State, Sovereignty and Kingship: The Pre-Modern Antecedents of the Presidential State – Asanga Welikala

14. Cosmology, Presidentialism and J.R. Jayewardene’s Constitutional Imaginary – Roshan de Silva Wijeyeratne

15. The ‘Line’ between Religion and Politics – Ananda Abeysekera

16. Jathika Chinthanaya and the Executive Presidency – Kalana Senaratne

17. Mahinda Rajapaksa as Modern Mahavasala and Font of Clemency? The Roots of Populist Authoritarianism – Michael Roberts

Volume 2

Part IV – Presidentialism: Comparative Perspectives

18. Failure of Quasi-Gaullist Presidentialism in Sri Lanka – Suri Ratnapala

19. Making of the Imperial U.S. President: A Review – Mark Hager

20. Exporting the American Presidential System to Sri Lanka: A Sceptical View of the Prospects for Democratic Consolidation under and Executive President in a Plural Society – Nikhil Narayan

21. The French Fifth Republic – Kamaya Jayatissa

22. Centralising Authority: Comparing Executive Power in India and Sri Lanka – Rehan Abeyratne

Part V – Presidentialism, Democracy and Pluralism: Alternative Constitutional Forms

23. Some Pillars for Lanka’s Future – Michael Roberts

24. A Reflection on National Unity, the Presidency, and the Institutional Form of the Sri Lankan State – Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu

25. Unconventional Conventions: Power Partnerships in the Sri Lankan Executive – H. Kumarasingham

26. The Overmighty Executive Reconsidered – Chandra R. de Silva

27. The Executive Presidency: A Left Perspective – Jayampathy Wickramaratne

28. Constitutionalism and Sri Lanka’s Gaullist Presidential System – Rohan Edrisinha

Bibliography
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