Wednesday, 20 November 2013 11:07
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Chaos over Sirikotha apology to Bodu Bala Sena
Ranil says MPs were not authorised to apologise to BBS
BBS stages demo in front of Sirikotha over alleged attack on General Secy
By Dharisha Bastians
Sending mixed signals and indicating anarchic conditions within the party leadership structure, a group of United National Party Parliamentarians apologised to the Bodu Bala Sena General Secretary Ven. Galagodaaththe Gnanasara for last week’s altercation at Sirikotha last week, while UNP National Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe announced the move was completely unauthorised.
The Bodu Bala Sena staged a demonstration in front of the UNP’s Pita Kotte Headquarters last morning, demanding the arrest of party supporters who allegedly attacked its General Secretary when he stormed the premises to shut down a human rights festival being held there last Thursday (14).
The BBS was also protesting the presence of Channel 4 journalists at the human rights festival last week.
Walking out of Sirikotha, UNP MPs Ravi Karunanayake and Daya Gamage apologised to the monk if he had been harmed in any way.
“If something happened to the Thero we apologise. But Channel 4 simply came to cover the festival. Who allowed Channel 4 into the country enabling them to report? The Government,” Karunanayake charged in the midst of the protest.
But meeting a group of reporters late last evening, Party National Leader Wickremesinghe said the MPs had not been authorised by the party to apologise to the BBS.
He said the apologies could only be portrayed as personal apologies. A statement on the matter was to be issued in due course, Wickremesinghe said.
Speaking to the Daily FT, Karunanayake denied they had issued an apology. “We only said that if there had been some incident, then we regret that,” he explained.
There was no decision by the UNP Leadership to issue an apology to the hardline group, the Daily FT learns.
The Bodu Bala Sena assault on the Party Headquarters last week prompted the Council’s first dictate to the party membership that the UNP was going to boycott the CHOGM opening ceremony to protest the Government-sponsored attack on its HQ and Opposition Leader Wickremesinghe.
