Special officers to implement Language Policy

[Harold F. Schiffman]

>>From the Sunday Observer (Sri Lanka)

Special officers to implement Language Policy
by Don Asoka Wijewardena

Obstacles have arisen in implementing the Official Language Policy (OLP)
on a district basis. The main problems are the dearth of qualified staff
and lack of institutional machinery, said Official Languages Commission
Chairman Raja Collure at a workshop on "implementation of the Official
Languages Policy in local government authorities in the Gampaha District
held at Golden Star Hotel, Negombo on September 26.

Collure said that the recent survey conducted by the Official Languages
Commission had revealed that a large number of vacancies in the post of
Tamil typists and translators in several government institutions had not
been filled so far.

He also said that in accordance with the provisions of the 13th and 16th
amendments to the Constitution of 1978 Sinhala and Tamil were the official
languages and English was the link language.

When asked about the implementation of official languages policy in local
government authorities, Collure said that the Government had decided that
Secretaries of every Ministry, Heads of Departments, Chief Secretaries of
Provincial Councils, Heads of Government Corporations and Statutory Bodies
would be designated as Chief Official Languages Implementation Officers
(COLIO) responsible for the due implementation of the Official Languages
Policy while Senior Assistant Secretaries (Administration) of every
Ministry and Deputies (Administration) in every Department, Local Body,
Provincial Council, Government Corporation and Statutory Body would also
be designated as official languages implementation officers in their
central and divisional offices.

http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2005/10/02/new25.html