International forces like the UN and Commonwealth Union are gearing up to force Sri Lanka to hold a referendum to set up a devolution unit by merging the North and the East, led Anti Imperialist Peoples Movement (AIPM) charged yesterday

AIPM Co-convener Venerable Dhambara Amila Thera told a news conference yesterday that the sudden Anti Muslim feeling that was brewing up in the country had hand work of these international organizations.

Venerable Thera said such a campaign was being carried out to distance the Muslims from the Sinhalese and bring them closer to Tamils for a certain reason.

This reason, he said, was to get the Muslim to support a merger of North and the East Provinces in the event of a referendum.

He said a Tamil Muslim Cooperation would be favorable to get a pro-merger result at a referendum. This he said because 33 percent of the population in the East was Muslims while there was also a 33 percent population of Tamils as well in the province.

Further he said the country was in a decisive stage with the US backed resolution in the UNHRC was to be taken up in March. In addition he said the Commonwealth was also gearing up to take action against Sri Lanka.

Venable Thera also charged that the World Bank and the International Monitory Fund (IMF) are trying to get the government to bring in a Bill to set up private University.

He said the GCE Advanced Level Results were set up with this objective in mind. Therefore over 130,000 students had been qualified to enter university as per the results while only 20,000 would be selected.

He said results had been manipulated to make 130,000 students to qualify to enter universities. The plan was to show that private universities were a dire need, he claimed.

AIPM had therefore decided to hold two simultaneous protests marches and a rally at Hyde Park on Wednesday.

One protest march would proceed to Hyde Park from D. R. Wijewardene Mawatha near Lake House while the other one would proceed from Punchi Borella. Several political parties and civil organizations are expected to participate in this campaign, sources said. (Yohan Perera)