RANIL WICKREMESINGHE REGIME ORDERS TO BREAK UP THE BIGGEST ANTI-MOU RALLY USING WATER CANNONS, CHEMICALS AND TEAR GAS WITH UNPRECEDENTED POLICE BRUTALITY AIMED AT JOURNALISTS

By Walter Jayawardhana reporting from Los Angeles

February 21. 11.36 AM: The Ranil Wickremesinghe government ordered the Police to use water cannons coupled with chemicals and tear gas to break up one of Sri Lanka’s biggest political demonstrations in recent history when the demonstrators attempted to march forward to present a memorandum to the Prime minister.

The police used force to stop an estimated crowd of 100,000 people who were demonstrating against the Sri Lanka government’s cease fire agreement with the Tamil Tigers which they said was separating the country without bringing an acceptable peace to the nation .

The water cannons coupled with chemicals and tear gas was especially aimed at Buddhist monks who participated in the demonstration in their thousands which was held to mark the first anniversary of the controversial agreement signed between the Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and terrorist leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.

The police allegedly attacked media personnel and damaged their cameras during the attack against the demonstrators. Eyewitnesses said the Island photojournalist Eranga Jayawardena was brutally attacked and admitted to the hospital. Police also damaged the Nikon digital camera he carried. The police aimed its brutality against media personnel with specific instructions from the Prime Ministers office, informed sources said.

The demonstration which started in the Peliyagoda area with a crowd of about 50,000 gradually swelled as it passed through Armour Street , Dharmamapala Mawatha and when it started marching towards the Temple Trees residence of Prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to hand over a memorandum the police barricaded Sir James Peiris Mawatha cutting them off from their destination. When they insisted to march the police used water cannons laced with chemicals and tear gas. But the demonstrators making use of a makeshift platform held a public meeting.

Bhikkus said the peaceful Buddhist monks who were marching were brutally attacked while the government was allowing any demonstration by the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. One monk said, “the police should remember the attacks on them by the Tamil Tigers.”

Tylvin Silva , General Secretary of the JVP promised retaliation for this attack on the peaceful demonstration . He said, “certainly Ranil Wickremesinghe would be sent home very soon.from his post in retirement.”

Parliamentarian Wimal Weerawansa said the shameless Prime Minister who paid taxes (kappam) to the LTTE was trying to intimidate the JVP by making noise (saththam). He said the political eunuch had accommodated the Tamil separatists so much that he was paving the way for the LTTE to declare a separate state in Sri Lanka unilaterally. He was allowing them to import shiploads of weapons. He was also allowing them to forcefully conscript children to his army. And with his best wishes foreign ambassadors were waiting in lines to pay homage to one of the worst terrorist groups who say they would never give up suicide bombers.

(21/02/03 go2lanka.com)