Hulugalle attempts to cover up government responsibility for attack on Sirasa
By Our Political Editor
(March 26, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Mr. Lakshman Hulugalle, Director General of National Security, attributed the attack on Sirasa TV to a Buddhist organization in a statement. However, the government has not taken any action to arrest anyone from this organization for the attack. In response, a Buddhist monk associated with the organization denied the allegations by Lakshman Hulugalle, deeming them baseless. Further revelations by people identifying the photographs of the attackers clearly indicates a highly organised political attack with the assistance of the police. All this clearly proves that Hulugalle’s statement was an attempt to cover up a political attack.
The Sirasa TV attack was a highly publicized event by an organized group on a well-known media establishment associated with the opposition. If the government has reliable information that a particular organization has carried out this attack, it is the duty of the government to reveal this information and to take appropriate legal action on the basis of that evidence. However, there has been no indication of any attempt by the government to gather such evidence against the perpetrators so as to bring them to justice. The governments’ attribution of this case to a Buddhist organization appears to be an attempt to divert criticism levelled against the government for allowing the attacks to occur, and for failing to mobilize governmental and law enforcement agents to take appropriate action.
The details of the attacks have been made transparent by means of available photographic evidence. Sirasa TV has publicized pictures of seventeen people demonstrating violent actions during the attack. The media station has also publicized photographs of the CTB bus which transported the attackers to and away from the location.
