The following principles constitute the Basic Structure of the Constitution of the Republic. These principles are inherent to the social compact of the People of Sri Lanka and are declared to be unamendable and eternal. No amendment, repeal or replacement of this Constitution shall be valid if it violates, diminishes or abolishes the essence of these pillars.

1. Sovereignty of the People: including the franchise and the right to exercise legislative, executive and judicial power through democratically elected representatives and independent institutions.

2. Supremacy of the Constitution: the principle that all laws and acts of the State derive their validity from this Constitution, and the power of judicial review to strike down enactments inconsistent with it.

3. Pre-enactment and Post-enactment Review: the Constitutional Court must be able to strike down a law that violates the Basic Structure, even after it has been enacted.

4. Unitary Character: to satisfy the majority opinion, the "indivisible and unitary State" may be declared a basic feature that can never be altered by any amendment.

5. Subsidiarity and Devolution: the fundamental principle of power-sharing between the Centre and the Provinces to guarantee local self-government within the unitary State.

6. Power-sharing as a Security Feature: power-sharing (devolution) must be regarded not as a "concession" granted to minorities, but as a security feature of the unitary State. If minorities feel that the Centre cannot lawfully "take back" their local self-government, the secessionist impulse disappears.

7. Devolution (Subsidiarity): ensuring that the principle of devolution (the Thirteenth Amendment or its successor) cannot be abolished by a simple majoritarian will.

8. Secular and Pluralist Character: the State's commitment to the equal dignity of all citizens and equal protection for all religions, while safeguarding the foremost place of Buddhism (in terms of Article 9), and the rejection of any form of religious or ethnic domination.

9. Secular/Pluralist Character: making the equal dignity of all citizens an unamendable basic feature while safeguarding the "foremost place" of Buddhism (Article 9).

10. Separation of Powers: the essential checks and balances among the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary.

11. Rule of Law and Independence of the Judiciary: ensuring that no leader is above the law, and protecting human dignity through the rights to equality, freedom and development.