University Tamil societies from across the UK have released a statement condemning the racist attacks outside the Oval on Monday.

21 Tamil societies joined together to denounce the attacks and commend the peaceful campaign of the activists, while questioning the lack of response from police forces to assaults.

"We the British Tamil youth are shocked by such racially motivated attacks and the malicious and spiteful slogans such as "F*** Tamils” and other expletives hurled at the peaceful men and women, several of whom sustained injuries from the incident. At this time we commend the Tamil activists caught up in the violence, for remaining steadfast in their purpose as peaceful campaigners even in the face of such violence and abuse."
 

The Secretary of the Ministry of External Affairs, Karunathilake Amunugama said that through the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, the 'correct image of Sri Lanka could be depicted to the international'.

Writing in the Guardian's 'Comment is free' section, Emily Howie - a lawyer with the Human Rights Law Centre and a leebron fellow at Columbia university - said the new 'enhanced screening' is jeopardising Sri Lankan asylum claims, and described Australia's deportation of asylum seekers from Sri Lanka as "reckless".

See here for full opinion. Extract published below:

"Australia's practice of returning Sri Lankans is reckless. Not only does the country turn a blind eye to the harm that the they may face on return, it does so on the basis of a diminished understanding of individuals' claims for asylum and without adequate monitoring back in Sri Lanka."

A Buddhist organisation, the Ravana Balaya, manhandled a group of evangelical Christians who were distributing religious magazines outside Colombo, reports Colombo Page.

Buddhist monks mobbed the Christian campaigners and handed them over to the police.

After facing further intimidation from the monks at the police station, the campaigners were eventually released.