(Reuters) – Sri Lankan security forces carried out a pre-dawn raid on Friday at an anti-government protest site and arrested of nine people, sparking reactions from opposition politicians, lawyers and foreign diplomats.
SAJITH PREMADASA, OPPOSITION LEADER OF SRI LANKA, ON TWITTER:
“A cowardly assault against PEACEFUL protesters, who agreed to vacate the sites today; A useless display of ego and brute force putting innocent lives at risk & endangers Sri Lanka’s international image, at a critical juncture.”
BAR ASSOCIATION OF SRI LANKA STATEMENT:
“The use of the Armed Forces to suppress civilian protests on the very first day in office of the new President is despicable and will have serious consequences on our country’s social, economic and political stability.”
EU IN SRI LANKA, ON TWITTER:
“Freedom of expression proved essential to Sri Lanka’s current transition. Hard to see how restricting it severely can help in finding solutions to the current political and economic crises.”
JULIE CHUNG, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO SRI LANKA, ON TWITTER:
“Deeply concerned about actions taken against protestors at Galle Face in the middle of the night. We urge restraint by authorities & immediate access to medical attention for those injured.”
SARAH HULTON, BRITISH HIGH COMMISSIONER TO SRI LANKA, TWITTER:
“Very concerned about reports from the Galle Face protest site. We have made clear the importance of the right to peaceful protest.”
(Reporting by Uditha Jayasinghe and Devjyot Ghoshal; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
