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Tamil diaspora behind Swiss incident and British court ruling, claims Sri Lanka’s defence secretary

Sri Lanka’s defence secretary has accused the Tamil diaspora of forcing the Swiss embassy into acting after one if its embassy staff was abducted, and claimed the diaspora influenced British politicians into ensuring a Sri Lankan soldier was found guilty by a British court of violating the Public Order Act last week.

Kamal Gunaratne told reporters at Pannipitiya that the Swiss embassy in Sri Lanka “acted on behalf of the needs of the Tamil Diaspora,” reports Ada Derana.

He went on to blame the diaspora for last week's ruling at Westminster Magistrate’s Court that found Sri Lanka’s Brigadier Priyanka Fernando guilty of motioning death threats to Tamil protestors in London. Gunaratne clammed the ruling was “a result of politicians in the UK who came into power with the support of pro-LTTE Diaspora in the UK”.

Gunaratne further stated that Brigadier Fernando will not have to pay the fine that the court had ordered him to pay, as the Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry and the High Commission “will take necessary measures on it”.

See more from Ada Derana here.

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