Aluthgama Pogrom & Gota’s Whitewashed

| by Robin Hood

( June 20, 2014, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian)
The communal riots stoked by the Rajapaksa influencing the Bodu Bala have now subsidized. The curfew imposed for the last three days has been lifted. Though the regime has misled the parliament by disclosing false figures of the casualties there are information’s leaked from the police inside sources.

Following are the figures of casualty by the end of 17th June
• Deaths 09
• Serious injuries caused 11
• Burned injuries 165
• Totally burnt shops 86
• Totally burnt houses 29
• Partially burnt and damaged houses 34
• Vehicles damaged 16
• Shops damaged and looted 16
• Fowls and goats killed 242
• Other properties damaged 352

Following the above destruction nobody has been taken into custody. Amid the curfew seven Muslims has been taken in to custody. Out of the nine deaths two deaths occurred by the shooting of the Bodu Bala Sena terrorists. No investigations have been done so far as how they got the fire arms for this attack. No magisterial inquiry has been taken place so far.

In order to divert people’s attention from the burning economic crisis and international pressure and to sustain his regime, the Rajapaksa nurtured communal hatred between the Buddhist and the Muslims community. Rajapaksa discreetly sponsored a terrorist clergy extremist group from the National defense fund for the last two years. The Rajapaksa continuously denied enforcing the law amid many provocative activities of the Bodu Bala. He promoted and instigated the racial discrimination of the Gnanasara. Before leaving to Bolivia Rajapaksa instructed his brother to start violence in his absence and came back yesterday and visited Aluthgama and Beruwala to see the destruction.

According to information’s reaching the Bodu Bala Sena has not taken prior permission from the police to hold a meeting from the area police. Before this no organization has kept any meetings by disrupting the traffic and closing the Aluthgama Beruwala main road. According to the prevailing law if there is a public meeting in any place the organization has to seek permission from the area OIC in writing. Further special permission has to be obtained for the use of loud speakers. A small amount has to be paid to the police and there will be a receipt issued by the police. As a result no prior permission has been taken by the Bodu Bala for this meeting until 15th. If there is an extract shown now after this exposure it definitely would be a fake one.

This was confirmed when the Aluthgama OIC reported the IGP that by convening this meeting there would be a possibility for an unrest. He has informed that the Bodu Bala has not taken any prior permission of a place or for the use of loud speakers. When the ASP of Kalutara and SSP Roshan Silva came to meet OIC Aluthgama on the 14th all three has visited the place where the meeting supposed to be held. As there are many Muslim shops around the vicinity and there would be a road block if a meeting is held the OIC has given his shown his resentment to keep a meeting. In the presence of SSP, ASK Sugath Kumara has told “there will not be any problem, if there would be any issue I will look after”. Even until then the Bodu Bala has not taken any prior permission in writing.

Before this when the Aluthgama OIC brought Ven. Samitha and the Muslim person to the police to resolve the first issue a robed member of the Bodu Bala has come forward and shown his disapproval for the compromise and told the Muslim should bow Ven. Samitha in the Aluthgama junction and ask for an apology the OIC had a small suspicion.

When the Bodu Bala member tried to take the laws in his hands within the police station, the OIC had a great suspicion anticipating the sly on this issue. However not taking the statements of the ASP and SSP Aluthgama, the police OIC has called the IGP and reported the earlier tensed situation and told according to the ground information, if there would be a meeting it would cause immense troubles so that he need an order to stop.

Following the information, the IGP without neglecting the statement of a junior officer has called the Defense Secretary and asked permission to cancel this. The criminal Defense secretary has told not to cancel but to give protection to Genasara and his group. Subsequently the IGP has given his consent not to cancel the meeting. Under the instruction of the IGP Gnanasara was given a security of six STF men and a defender truck. After the destruction of Aluthgama the same STF defender has given escort and protection to Gnanasara until Panadura.

From the above it appears this deliberate barbaric act of stoking the racism has been orchestrated without a prior permission and amid the resistance of the ground level police officers. As a result for all this large destruction and human casualties the criminal defense secretary and the IGP should directly bear the responsibilities.

The Criminal defense secretary yesterday during the defense ministry meeting called Galabodaatte Gnanasaara and few other robed terrorist members and denied their involvement in the Beruwala incident and baptized the Bodu Bala Sena and put the blame on JVP and the UNP. During the meeting held on the 18th afternoon leader of Bodu Bala Galagodaatte Gnanasara, the coordinating secretary, Embilipitiye Vijitha, Antharagan Gnanawimala and Witharandeniye Nanda criminal terrorists participated.

Gotabaya Rajapaksa said that it is wrong to accuse these monks for these attacks. If the people were agitated and attacked due to the provocative speech then during the stories of Anagarika Dharmapala when they called “Wake up Singhalese” people would have agitated and attacked, but nothing like such happened. Our intelligence reports say that this is a conspiracy of the JVP and the UNP. They have surreptitiously deployed their spies and attacked the villagers. Gnanasara said that he too has a name list of those spies if I was not there they would have attacked us. Gobataya asserted that this was a good weapon for the anti government people. He said there were similar incidents in the past. Gotabaya said that these are conspiracies intrigued by the UNP’s and JVP’. They deploy their spies into the protests and create a catastrophe and later show the destruction to the international community and criticize the government.

Gotabaya turned towards the IGP and said “I am planning to bring the Muslims tomorrow. Please submit a full list of the destruction including human casualties. Please deploy the STF in Beruwala for another week”

Amid this discussion Gnanasara said that there is a group waiting to kill him and submitted a letter regarding the issue. Gotabaya immediately told the IGP to provide a STF protection to Gnanasara. The IGP said if we provide STF protection this time it would cause troubles so that we can give the protection of the MSD. Gotabaya said if there is a problem like that deploy them in civil. He further stressed if any monk is brought for inquiry or taking into custody regarding the Aluthgama attack to inform his before.

We already know with video evidence the catastrophe and the attacks causing with nine civilian deaths including an infant, 176 people injured and millions of properties destructed was instigated by the Rajapaksas and orchestrated by the Gnanasara of Bodu Bala Sena with full regime patronage.