August 2011, 12:07

Dr Vickramabahu included below]

protest against political prisoners


Protest was organized to mark the imprisonment of general Fonseka on 8 august 2011. Over thousand participated in the picket opposite Welikada prison, Colombo around 4 pm. Dr Vickramabahu made the following speech.

"Nava Sama Samaja party participated in this protest to condemn the government for keeping political prisoners including general Fonseka. There are thousands of Tamil prisoners; some in unknown places. Some one coming here today may conclude there is freedom to express opposing views. But that is an illusion. Only few days back a journalist of the Udayan paper was attacked with iron bars for writing the truth and exposing the government. Few months back meeting conducted by Tamil parliamentarians in the north was attacked by an army contingent led by a colonel. But no one is caught for these nasty acts. State terror and thuggery are behind these crimes. There is no proper justice. Who appoints the Supreme Court judges, it is Mahinda Rajapaksa. Who appoints the IGP? It is Mahinda Rajapaksa. Who appoints the prison commissioner, it is Mahinda Rajapaksa and who appoints the attorney general it is Mahinda Rajapaksa. We do not have justice but judicial terror of Mahinda Rajapaksa. General Fonseka and all political prisoners are kept under this judicial terror. The way forward was shown by the workers who fought against the fraudulent attempt to rob EPF, ETF and gratuity under the pretext of giving a pension. Workers faced armed repression that shot down a worker and injured many others. Workers finally won. So did the university teachers who fought daringly against the repression of the government. We must come together to fight back. We are politically different; but we have a common enemy. We must again and again come together in the streets to fight back continuously.”

UPU news 12 Aug 2011, Colombo.