Sri Lanka Revamps Intelligence Program

The Sri Lankan government has created, through a new act of parliament, a hopefully improved National Intelligence Service. It is no secret that previous incarnations were widely regarded to be failures. Prior to 1984, intelligence was gathered by the country’s police service. After a perceived failure during riots in 1983, a new organization was formed with the specific goal of gathering information. It was first called the National Intelligence Service, and then renamed in 2006 to State Intelligence Service.

This newer version is to be established by the Ministry of Defense on an urgent basis. The government expects that the draft bill will be submitted soon. The bill states that the new service will be comprised of internal and external sections, both of which will report directly to the Ministry of Defense, and more importantly President Mahinda Rajapaksa; President Rajapaksa is also Sri Lanka’s Defense Minister.

The bill hopes to enforce the idea of an efficient national security system which will protect the country’s peace and stability.