Tensions escalated yesterday over the arrest of Sri Lanka’s former army chief, Sarath Fonseka, with violent clashes outside the Supreme Court, where his wife petitioned for his immediate release.
Opposition parties who backed Fonseka in his failed challenge to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse in elections last month also demanded his release and said they feared for his safety in military custody.
Fonseka was arrested by troops at his office in Colombo on Monday night and, according to the defense ministry, will be court-martialed on charges of conspiring against the government.
Anti-riot police used tear gas and water cannon yesterday to break up a clash between thousands of Fonseka supporters and ruling party activists outside the capital’s Superior Courts complex.
Several bystanders were wounded, an AFP photographer said.
The opposition had called for a peaceful sit-down protest, but violence erupted after they were stoned by ruling party supporters.
As order was restored, Fonseka’s wife arrived to file a petition for her husband’s release. Supreme Court officials said a hearing had been fixed for tomorrow.
Opposition parties said they believed Fonseka, who is being held at the naval headquarters in Colombo, was in danger.
“We have good reason to believe that the extra-judicial arrest of General Fonseka may be followed up with assassination while in custody,” they said in a joint statement.
The increase in tensions came as Rajapakse dissolved parliament on Tuesday night and called snap legislative elections for April 8.
Rajapakse was returned to power for a second term last month after easily defeating Fonseka at the end of a bitter presidential election battle.
The government has yet to spell out the charges against Fonseka, but defense ministry spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella told reporters the general had colluded with opposition politicians last year while still heading the army.
Asked if he stood accused of treason, Rambukwella said: “It could be one of the charges.”
Fonseka and Rajapakse fell out after the army’s crushing defeat of Tamil Tiger rebels in May, as both sought to take credit for ending the 37-year separatist insurgency.
Opposition lawmaker Karu Jayasuriya said the combined opposition was seeking the support of the influential Buddhist clergy in pressuring the government to free Fonseka and curb a crackdown on dissidents and rival politicians.
“We are speaking to all religious leaders and will have a series of religious events to seek the release of General Fonseka from custody and ensure more democratic freedoms,” Jayasuriya said.
Sri Lanka’s former peace facilitator, Norway, joined the UN, France and the US in expressing concern over Fonseka’s arrest, saying it risked impeding progress toward “lasting political stability.”
Earlier this month, Rajapakse sacked a dozen senior military officers in an unprecedented purge. The defense ministry said the officers were a threat to national security. Party workers from Fonseka’s office were also arrested.
The Sri Lankan government is also concerned about Fonseka’s apparent willingness to testify at any probe into alleged war crimes committed by Sri Lankan troops last year in the final stages of the conflict with Tiger rebels.
“I am not prepared to protect anyone, if they have committed war crimes,” Fonseka said before his arrest.
The government has resisted international calls for a probe, following claims that a senior defense official ordered the killing of surrendering rebel leaders.
The UN says 7,000 civilians died during the final stages of the conflict.
‘CROSSING THE LINE’: China’s embassy in Seoul criticized US Forces Korea Commander General Xavier Brunson, asking if his ‘hostile’ remarks were authorized by Washington South Korea and the US are in talks over recent public remarks by the commander of US Forces Korea, Seoul’s presidential office said yesterday, after the comments drew sharp criticism from China. In a recent podcast interview, US Forces Korea Commander General Xavier Brunson described South Korea as “the dagger in the heart of Asia” from China’s east coast, prompting the Chinese embassy in Seoul to say that he had “truly crossed the line.” The interview came amid growing speculation that Washington might seek to expand the role of US Forces Korea in countering the growing regional influence of China, a key
Through the noise of rushing papers and whirring belts at a print factory in Kyoto, two creators watch their photo essay come to life in broadsheet form — part of an effort to win new audiences in the age of artificial intelligence (AI). Despite the decline of the publishing industry, self-publication and handmade “zine” magazines are growing in popularity in Japan, reflecting the nation’s enduring love of paper in the digital era. While speaking to Agence France-Presse at the plant, his hands black with ink, one of the creators, Kazuma Obara, said: “I think [paper] is a medium that engages all five
Australian researchers have trained lab-grown brain cells on a silicon computer chip to play the 1990s shooter game Doom and said they are just scratching the surface of what the neurons could be capable of doing. It is the science-fiction work of biotech boffins at Cortical Labs, who researched and developed the technology that harnesses the workings of the brain’s networking system. Each so-called “biological computer” contains about 200,000 living human brain cells, grown from stem cells that were harvested from blood donations. Having mastered the simple computer game Pong, where a paddle is moved up and down to send a ball
France experienced its hottest spring on record, the French weather service said on Tuesday, after an exceptional early heat wave that also broke highs for the season in England and Wales. Meteo-France said the average nationwide temperature over March to May was 13.8°C — about 1.7°C above the norm, and surpassing records set in 2011 and 2020. “The warmest spring since records began in 1900,” it said in a bulletin. All three months were warmer than average, but the onset of an “unprecedented heatwave” late last month pushed the mercury to highs typically seen at the height of the summer. “Our country had never
RSS