by Melani Manel Perera

A demonstration outside the Libyan Embassy in Sri Lanka. Slogans in Sinhala and English demanding freedom for the North African country. Strongly worded intervention by Wickramabhu, leader of the New Leftist Front, against President Mahinda Rajapksa.

Colombo (AsiaNews) - Opposition politicians, social activists and journalists demonstrated yesterday to express their solidarity with the Libyan people, who have been struggling in the name of democracy for the resignation of leader Muammar Gaddafi since mid-February. The protest, organized by the Council of Social Democrats (CSD), was held outside the Libyan Embassy at noon (local time) and lasted about an hour. The memorandum of the CSD, posted outside the Libyan Embassy, says: "We condemn any military action against civilians, across Libya, and demand that the regime immediately stop all forms of repression of peaceful protests."

Many slogans in Sinhala and English were held by protesters, reading: "Libya free", "Stop the massacre of innocent civilians," "Our president supports Gaddafi, we support the Libyan people."

Wickramabahu Karunaratne, leader of the New Leftist Front, was in the front row of the protests. The politician said: "We express our solidarity and our support for the Libyan people, who are fighting to oust a dictator who has deceived him." And turning to the President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Wickramabahu added: "Our leaders must be aware that they are not immune from the fate that has united the dictators of Egypt and Libya: Gaddafi and Mubarak are the same, they all say the same things." Calling them a band of thieves, he said they “consider terrorism the power of the people." At the conclusion of his speech, Wickramabahu asked the Libyan ambassador to Sri Lanka to join the protest in Colombo and that of his countrymen.

F. Marimuttu Sathivel, a Christian priest who was also present at the event, stressed that the people of Sri Lanka "can not bow their heads before injustice and inhuman acts. We should always walk in peace, unity and harmony". Because "this may be our country, or any other country in the world. Because we are all human beings”.

According to data provided by the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment, at least 50 migrant workers have returned from Libya to Sri Lanka, while there are still about one thousand. The government is organizing a charter flight to return home 418 other people currently blocked in Tripoli in the Sri Lankan Embassy. With the help of India, Colombo is hoping to get the workers home, even by ship.

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• Lanka
• Libya
• protest
• democracy
• dictatorship
• solidarity
• immigrant
• workers