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President assures right to peacefully protest
20 Apr, 2022
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa today assured the right of citizens to peacefully protest.
In a twitter message the President said that?Sri Lankan citizens’ right to peacefully protest wont be hindered.
He also said that the Police will carry out an impartial and transparent inquiry with regards to the incident at Rambukkana.
The President said that he is deeply saddened by the tragedy.
He also urged all citizens to refrain from violence as they protest.
The Police?opened fire?on a group of protesters in Rambukkana yesterday killing one person and injuring a number of others.
Police Spokesman, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Nihal Thalduwa said that the Police had opened fire after initially using tear gas.
He said that the Police had opened fire when the protesters had attempted to set fire to a fuel truck.
According to the Police, the protesters had blocked the railway track and protested in the area for several hours.
The Police had advised the protesters to cleat the tracks but the request was rejected.
According to the Police, the protesters had then set fire to a three-wheeler and attempted to set fire to the fuel truck.
The Police had opened fire on the protesters killing one person and injuring at least 24 others.
The Police media unit said that a number of policemen were also injured in the incident.
The Police Special Task Force (STF) was deployed in the area to try and control the situation.?(Colombo Gazette)
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