Sri Lanka to delay education reforms in wake of opposition protests

Colombo, Jan 13 (PTI) After months of opposition to proposed education reforms, the Sri Lankan government of Anura Kumara Dissanayake on Tuesday decided to delay their implementation.

“The Cabinet decided to hold back implementing the reforms till 2027,” Cabinet spokesman and minister Nalinda Jayathissa told reporters.

A controversy erupted over year 6 English module under the proposed reforms. The Ministry of Education had lodged a complaint with the police on a purported link to a gay dating website contained in the year 6 English module. The website was later blocked by the government.

The year 1 reforms, however, would be implemented this year, Jayathissa said.

Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya, who is also the minister of education, has resisted calls to resign as sit-in protests began for her removal led by opposition politicians.

President Dissanayake and Amarasuriya both insisted that reforms would be implemented despite the opposition.

The government slammed what it called a “sinister campaign” by the opposition against Amarasuriya alleging it was harassment of a woman politician.

Asked why the government decided to delay reforms, Jayathissa said it was not the government’s intention to carry them forward with even the slightest doubt attached to them.

The government said the reforms are meant to transform the primary education system to a continuous assessment based system with practical learning and critical thinking from the current term tests based system.

The education trade unionists and the opposition said although they are not opposed to reforms, they claim they were developed with no adequate consultation.

The key stakeholders in the education sector were not consulted, they alleged. Moves like the extending of school hours would adversely impact both teachers and students, they added.

The principals and teachers trade unions had threatened protests. PTI CORR GSP GSP