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| Friday, 1 October 2004 |
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Thirukkovil Muslims protest against LTTE by Ranil Wijayapala The daily life in the Thirukkovil area in the Ampara district was disrupted yesterday with hundreds of Muslims protesting against the LTTE demanding free access to their paddy lands without any LTTE interference. The Muslims who gathered along the streets of Thirukkovil set fire to tyres blocked roads and shouted anti LTTE slogans, military and police said. According to Military Spokesman Colonel Sumedha Perera, Muslims who gathered in hundreds demanded they should be allowed to engage in paddy cultivation in the Wattamadu area. Normality in the area was disrupted as schools, banks, shops and private and state sector agencies remained closed to express support to the agitation which comprised about 1500 people, sources added. According to Police, the agitation was due to an LTTE threat to a civilian to stop the tilling of paddy lands in the Wattamadu area. A civilian in Thirukkovil in a complaint to police on September 22, claimed that LTTE cadres threatened him to stop tilling paddy fields in Wattamadu area since they had not obtained approval for tilling paddy lands. Police assisted by STF personnel brought the situation under control while the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) arrived to defuse the situation. LTTE cadres also rushed after they learnt about the agitation. Police and SLMM representatives held a few rounds of talks with Muslim agitators with the participation of LTTEers to resolve the matter, sources added. |
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