Demonstrators attack TULF office

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 October 2000, 15:04 GMT]
A group of persons said to have been members of the Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) Tuesday afternoon staged a one hour demonstration in front of the Jaffna office of the Tamil United Liberation Front, from 12.30 pm.

The demonstration was held to protest a statement made by the senior vice president of the TULF Mr.V.Anandasangary that people of the islets in the Jaffna district should be freed first from the clutches of the EPDP.

The demonstrators were brought by buses to the Jaffna Dhuraiappah stadium. Thereafter they marched towards the office of the TULF. They shouted slogans against the TULF. They pulled down the name board of the TULF, Jaffna office and burnt it. The protest was led by EPDP parliamentarian Mathanarajah and Nedunthivu Pradeshiya Sabha Chairman A.W.Ariyanayakam, said sources.

They threw stones and slippers at the police personnel who were on duty there. The Police have reported this incident to its headquarters.

Mr.Anandasangary later said that demonstrators were the stooges of the EPDP and not the people of the islets. "We have decided not to make any complaint to the police in this regard. Because we believe that the police are helpless," in reference to the EPDP's armed cadres and link to the Sri Lanka Army.

Several islets in the Jaffna district are under the control of the EPDP. EPDP cadres camped there are not allowing any other political parties to enter these islets to conduct election campaigns.

Meanwhile the Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV), an independent polls observation group said Tuesday that it has received complaints of 1162 incidents of election related violence during the campaign for the forthcoming parliamentary elections which began 28 days ago.

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