Diaspora Festival- JHU considers restraining order



Opposing the scheduled Sri Lankan Diaspora Festival organised by the Foreign Affairs Ministry, the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) today said they would consider obtaining a Court order restraining the festival unless President Maithripala Sirisena reveal his stance on the event.

JHU Media Spokesperson Nishantha Sri Warnasinghe said Minister Samaraweera had not been given the mandate to hold such an event where they expected national reconciliation would be gravely damaged.

He said since the Diaspora Festival was not mentioned in President Maithripala Sirisena’s manifesto or in government’s 100 Day programme, Minister Samaraweera had acted beyond his mandate that would strengthen those who still have Eelam mindset.

Commenting on the $ 3.2 million offered by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for expenses for the Diaspora Festival, Mr. Warnasinghe said there should be hidden conditions and regulations of the UNHRC to give such amount of money.

“Who offers such amount of money for free? We cannot trust them because they had already taken action to file war crime charges against our country. The Diaspora Festival is very doubtful to the whole country,” he charged.

The JHU urged the Government to make known to the public the real objective of holding the Festival without hoodwinking them, while submitting the country to separatism and extremism once again.

He said Sri Lankans are still afraid of even the word “Diaspora” what was linked with many stories of LTTE terrorists.

It was hard to believe persons and organisations who supplied financial assistance to the LTTE during the time of war, would offer money and other offering for the development of the country, he said.

Therefore, the Diaspora Festival in which persons of Sri Lankan origin from around the world would participate, would be a threat to national security and national unity, he said. (Piyumi Fonseka)

 


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