JVP MP says he was attacked for "opposing shut down"

[TamilNet, Saturday, 14 January 2006, 08:48 GMT]
A Sinhala nationalist JVP parliamentarian, who was attacked Friday in a suburb of Trincomalee town, has claimed, on Saturday, that he was attacked by a group of Sinhala persons for "opposing" the continuation of the shut down on the Tamil festival day, Thai Pongal. However, most of the Sinhala-owned shops remained closed in the east port town for the third day while Tamils remained in their homes to celebrate Thai Pongal. Two Sinhala nationalist organisations, backed by the JVP, had called for the four-day shut down in Trincomalee.

A section of the electronic media Saturday quoted Mr.Jayantha Wijeysekara, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Trincomalee district parliamentarian as saying that he was assaulted for not supporting the general shut down on Thai Pongal day.

The reports went on quoting the JVP MP as saying that a group of Sinhalese assaulted him when he got down from the vehicle to distribute leaflets asking not to continue with the hartal on the Thai Pongal day.

The general shut down organized by two Sinhala nationalist groups in Trincomalee against the attacks on Sri Lanka Military entered third day on Saturday.

Shops were not opened except few in Tamil areas where the Tamil festival, Pongal, was being celebrated.

The Sinhala Front, comprising two Sinhala nationalist organisations, the Sinhala Vimukthi Sanvidhanaya (Sinhala Liberation Organization) and Negenahira Sinhala Pibidena Sanvidhanaya (Eastern Sinhala Resurgence Organization), backed by the JVP, had called for a four day shut down, including the Pongal day, to protest against the attack on Sri Lanka Navy craft.