Wednesday, 25 June 2014 10:37
June 25, 2014, 9:43 am
By Shamindra Ferdinando
Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) Leader and Justice Minister Rauff Hakeem has suggested to Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa that an institutionalised mechanism be established to prevent recurrence of religious violence.
Minister Hakeem met the Defence Secretary at the Defence Ministry yesterday.
Having briefed the party of his meeting with Defence Secretary Rajapaksa, Justice Minister Hakeem told The Island last night that he had got an opportunity to discuss the entire gamut of issues relating to recent violence at Alutgama and Beruwela with the Defence Secretary.
Yesterday’s meeting was meant to explore ways and means of thwarting violence, Minister Hakeem said, adding that nothing could be as important as having an institutionalised mechanism to meet any eventuality.
Responding to a query, the SLMC leader said that in the wake of Alutgama mayhem, the government shouldn’t resort to ad hoc measures to prevent another bout of violence.
Minister Hakeem reiterated allegation that the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) was responsible for attacks on the Muslim community. The Defence Secretary pointed out that there were other groups beside the BBS under scrutiny.
Asked whether he had taken up any other issues, Minister Hakeem said that they had also discussed the need to take tangible measures to prevent hate speech as well as inflammatory statements.
A deeply concerned Justice Minister said recent violence pointed to the need for an ‘early warning system’ to ensure the government could act swiftly and decisively before disaster struck. The Minister said that he had informed Defence Secretary Rajapaksa of that need and some shortcomings in security set-up during the recent disturbances.
http://www.island.lk/index.php?page_cat=article-details&page=article-details&code_title=105698
Tuesday, 24 June 2014 12:12
June 23, 2014, 10:50 pm
By Madura Ranwala
Police would not prevent a Bodu Bala Sena event scheduled to be held today at 3.00 p.m. opposite the Sri Dalada Maligawa as it was a religious event, police spokesman SSP Ajith Rohana said yesterday.
However, the SSP warned that action would be taken if the event was used to incite racism and create religious disharmony.
SSP said that it was unlikely that the BBS would be able to hold its ‘Adhistana Pooja’ as permission for the event had not been granted by the authorities concerned.
When contacted, Chief Executive Officer of the BBS operating from Colombo, Dilanthe Vithanage said last night that they were planning to hold the religious event with the participation of 300 to 400 Buddhist monks from Mahiyanganaya, Colombo and Kandy.
http://www.island.lk/index.php?page_cat=article-details&page=article-details&code_title=105633#