US embassy “greatly concerned” about attacks on students

by admin
Nov 28, 2012

The Embassy of the United States in Colombo has released a statement, expressing concern about recent acts of violence by government officials, including the attacks on Tamil students and the beating of a reporter on November 28.

The students were attacked during a demonstration against military harassment of Tamil youths commemorating the Tamil National Remembrance Day.

The US has called upon Sri Lankan authorities to “exercise restraint and respect peaceful demonstrations”.

See full statement below. See here for statement in Tamil and Sinhala.

"The United States Embassy in Colombo is concerned about recent threats to freedom of expression in Sri Lanka.

The November 28 beating of a reporter in Jaffna, harassment by Government of Sri Lanka officials of independent media outlets, and searches without warrants of journalists all serve to stifle media freedom.

Additionally, the Embassy is greatly concerned about reports of attacks on students in Jaffna. We call upon authorities to exercise restraint and respect peaceful demonstrations."

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