Sri Lanka’s constitution enshrines Buddhism in a privileged state role.

Evidence

According to Article 9 of the constitution, “The Republic of Sri Lanka shall give to Buddhism the foremost place and accordingly it shall be the duty of the state to protect and foster the Buddha Sasana, while assuring to all religions the rights granted by Articles 10 and 14(1)(e).” Article 10 provides for “freedom of thought, conscience, and religion, including the freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice,” and Article 14(1)(e) gives the individual the right “to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching,” alone or as part of a group, “in public or in private.” Even the draft constitutions fashioned by the Chandrika Kumaratunga government in the mid-1990s provided Buddhism privileged status, going beyond the 1972 and 1978 (present) constitutions to attempt to organize a Supreme Council comprising the chief priests, who would ensure Buddhism was protected and fostered. — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 144

Categorization

• ADDENDUM: The divergence DeVotta notes between professed constitutional egalitarian guarantees (Articles 10 and 14(1)(e)) and actual institutional privileging of one religion connects directly to my interest in whether professed conviction predicts actual bias — the constitutional text itself enshrines both claims simultaneously.
• XREF: connects to: The very forces that built Ceylonese secularism also cultivated Buddhist communalism.; Sri Lankan party leaders compete to subordinate constitutional drafting to monk authority — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist…, 313; Buddhism serves as a philosophy rather than a religion. — Dan Harris, 10 percent Happier, 440 (+6 more)

Broader Connections

• Sri Lankan party leaders compete to subordinate constitutional drafting to monk authority #expands (0.92) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 313
• Extremist Sinhalese parties weaponized Buddhism against Tamil devolution #expands (0.88) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 157
• Sinhalese monks frame Buddhism’s status through territorial threat perception #expands (0.85) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 153
• Monks built anachronistic historical claims to legitimize politicized Buddhism #expands (0.82) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 51
• Even nominally secular civic events stage Buddhism chiefly to signal its political supremacy. #expands (0.80) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 147
• Sinhalese Buddhist nationalist ideology rests on mythic history yet betrays Buddhism’s core values #expands (0.80) — Neil DeVotta, Sinhalese Buddhist Nationalist Ideology, 294
• Buddhism serves as a philosophy rather than a religion. #qualifies (0.75) — Dan Harris, 10 percent Happier, 440
• Post-independence law still guaranteed a Hindu chairman over Buddhism’s holiest temple until 2013 #qualifies (0.75)