The executive, legislature and judiciary are the three pillars of democracy, while the judiciary plays a special role in safeguarding democracy in a country, Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa said.
He added that the independent media and civil society citizens are two additional important pillars in protecting democracy.
Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa said that, against this backdrop, the government is currently exerting pressure on the judiciary by seeking to increase the retirement age of Supreme Court judges and by failing to fill vacancies in the Supreme Court, thereby undermining democracy.
He said leaving positions vacant without appointing judges to the Supreme Court amounts to interference in the judiciary.
The Opposition Leader further said that the Samagi Jana Balawegaya, the Samagi Jana Sandhaya and the Progressive Opposition are prepared to protect the principles that uphold the rule of law, justice and fairness in the process of administering justice.
He also said that the people had given a mandate to move towards a new constitution that would abolish the executive presidential system and strengthen democracy without undermining democracy or the judiciary.
Rejecting this mandate, he said, would amount to a violation of the human rights and fundamental rights of the people.
