Colombo (AsiaNews) - Christian and non-Christian groups on Tuesday organised a rally in front of the Justice Ministry at the Superior Courts Complex in Colombo, demanding an end to the country's anti-terrorism legislation, the release of those arbitrarily arrested and the protection of the human and legal rights of those in detention. Protesters included relatives of people who went missing during and after the country's civil war.
During the demonstration, Christian Solidarity Movement (CSM) members Frs Ashok Stephen and Marimuttu Sathivil met the minister and handed him an official letter, signed by the CSM as well as the Collective of the Families of the Disappeared, the Janawabodhaya Centre, the National Fisheries Solidarity Movement and the Ceylon Teachers Union.
For the Sri Lankan government, the Prevention of Terrorism Act is still needed because some people are trying to re-establish the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the Tamil Tiger rebel group that fought for almost 30 years (1983-2009) to create an independent Tamil state in the northern and eastern Sri Lanka. Human rights activists disagree, arguing that the law is a threat to democracy.
The protest follows the arrest of Fr Praveen Maheshan, a Tamil priest, and Ruki Fernando, a Sinhalese Catholic activist, who were detained under the anti-terrorism law because they had made inquiries about Balendran Jeyakumari, a Tamil rights activist arrested along with her 13-year-old daughter, on charges of "harbouring a criminal".
Although placed under a restraining order, Fr Praveen and Fernando were released thanks in no small part to a media campaign. However, the same did not happen in the case of the Tamil woman and her daughter, or in similar incidents that occurred in the north of the country.
In fact, in their letter the associations cite not only Balendran's case, but also that of Nitharshana, 28, who was arrested in Wiahwamadhu on 12 March whose fate is unknown, and that of K Paalai Otturu of Sharmila, a pregnant woman who has been held in the Boosa Detention Centre since 13 March.
Sister Ramani, a member of the Holy Family order, is particularly concerned about the situation of Balendran Jayakumari. "Her daughter Vibhushika is only 13 years old," the nun explained, "and she is under surveillance. She has already lost her father and two brothers during the war."
"A third brother disappeared after he was taken away by soldiers. Only her mother was left to protect her, but she lost her too because of false charges. What the government did - depriving a child of her mother - is a shameful thing."