Responding to the arrest of Jaffna Mayor, Viswalingam Manivannan, under charges of “attempting to resurrect the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the United National Party have issued a statement condemning the arrest under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and stating that “an inquiry into any alleged wrongdoing […] must be carried out by the relevant Ministry prior to any police action”.
The statement further questions the charges noting that the Jaffna Task Force which wore a blue uniform, allegedly bearing resemblance to the uniform the police force of the LTTE, is also similar to that worn by parking attendants within the Colombo Municipality.
Former Foreign Minister, Mangala Samaraweera pointed this out on Twitter asking: “Are we also going to accuse the Colombo Mayor of attempting to revive the LTTE?”
Jaffna Mayor arrested under the PTA on charges based on the uniforms worn by the security of his Municipal Council; almost identical uniforms are worn by the security at the Colombo Municipal. Are we also going to accuse the Colombo Mayor of attempting to revive the LTTE?
— Mangala Samaraweera (@MangalaLK) April 9, 2021
Whilst the UNP statement calls for the relevant authorities to handle the matter in a transparent manner, Tamil political leaders are demanding his immediate release and condemning the arrests as an illustration of Sri Lankan fascism.
Read the full UNP statement here.
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