• Buddhasasana Min. blames delay on multiples stages of and stakeholders involved in the process of formulating and approving amendments  

The Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious, and Cultural Affairs has admitted that there has been a delay on the part of several institutions involved in amending the Buddhist Temporalities Ordinance (Vihara Devalagam Act), but maintained that the delay is not a deliberate attempt to stall the process.

Speaking to The Daily Morning, Deputy Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious, and Cultural Affairs, Gamagedara Dissanayake said that the process of preparing and approving the amendments to the said Legislation involves several stages and institutions, including the Attorney General’s (AG) Department, the Legal Draftsman’s (LD) Department, and the Mahanayakas (Chief Prelates) of the three Buddhist Sects.

“There is a delay from all ends. When we prepare this as a draft and send it to the AG's Department, they provide their observations on whether it is in accordance with the law. When those observations are accommodated, sometimes, the amendment that we expect is not included in it. Then, we again ask the Mahanayakas for their opinions on this matter and send it back to the AG's Department with their views. This process continues,” he said.

He noted that related communications between these institutions are not exchanged immediately. “Even at this moment, we have submitted the relevant drafts to the Mahanayakas and sent them back to the LD’s Department with their opinions. We hope to pass it once we receive their final approval. It is the slow pace of official correspondence that has prolonged and delayed the process.”

When queried as to whether there has been a deliberate attempt to delay the relevant process on the part of the relevant institutions, Dissanayake said: “There is some delay in the institutions related to this process. That is why there has been such a delay. The nature of many institutions in our country is slow. Sometimes, it takes an unimaginable time to even exchange letters. This is not a planned delay. It is simply the nature of the institutions,” he said.

The explanation comes after the Asgiri Chapter of the Siam Buddhist Sect alleged that certain groups with vested interests within Government institutions were deliberately obstructing the process of amending the Ordinance. Speaking to The Daily Morning, Secretary of the Supreme Sangha Council of the Asgiri Chapter, Ven. Dr. Medagama Dhammananda Thera said that they had long been calling for amendments to the Ordinance — particularly to Sections 41 and 42, which concern the registration of bhikkhus and the offense of passing off as a bhikkhu.

Earlier, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake announced that amendments to the said Ordinance had already been drafted and would soon be submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers before being presented to the Parliament.