Sri Lanka’s former army chief has issued a call to the military, asking them not to follow orders from acting president Ranil Wickremesinghe and instead "raise your weapons against corrupt politicians".
In a Facebook post alongside a photograph of himself in full military uniform, Fonseka called on “law abiding disciplined patriotic war heroes” in the military to “refrain from following the unconstitutional orders given by Ranil Wickremesinghe”.
“There is a rumour among the public that the shooting orders were issued and there is a serious risk of creating a conflict between the tri-forces and the country's ordinary unarmed civilians,” he added.
“Again and again I urge you to avoid targeting ordinary civil unarmed civilians and raise your weapons against corrupt politicians as a law abiding and disciplined army.”
“At this moment I am also in the struggle field and insist on being with the people and dedicating to the victory of the people's struggle,” he concluded.
Fonseka is one of the architects of the Mullivaikkal genocide. He served as Sri Lanka’s army commander during the final years of the wars, from 2005 to 2009, which oversaw a litany of war crimes including the indiscriminate shelling of hospitals, mass executions and sexual violence. During the final months, UN data suggests that over 70,000 Tamils were slaughtered whilst local census records indicate that at least 146,679 people are unaccounted for and are presumed to have been killed.
Fonseka has been rumoured to be angling for a leadership position within the protests.
