Riots: Rajapaksa promises fair probe

A Sri Lankan man inspects the charred remains of a bag tailoring unit following attacks during a communal clash in Aluthgama, Sri Lanka on Monday. File photo

President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Wednesday said an impartial inquiry would be conducted to probe the recent clashes in Aluthgama and Beruwala, coastal towns to the south of Colombo.

Soon after his return from Bolivia where he attended the G77 summit, President Rajapaksa met Muslim and Buddhist leaders in Beruwala on Wednesday afternoon. “We can’t let anyone harm any person or property,” he said.

Motion passed

Following the incident, the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress — the party headed by Justice Minister Rauf Hakeem is part of the ruling coalition here — boycotted Wednesday’s parliament session.

A motion against the U.N. Resolution seeking a probe into alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka, and which the Sri Lankan government has rejected, was passed in Parliament with 144 favourable votes from MPs. The United National Party (UNP), the main opposition, abstained from voting while the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) voted against it.