Over 60 Sri Lankan orgs to launch campaign against international involvement in probe

Over sixty Sri Lankan organisations are to meet this morning to launch a campaign to combat what they identify as "threats to national interests", including any foreign involvement in a domestic investigation into the final stages of the armed conflict, the Island reports.

The organisations will meet today to sign a five point declaration, which along side preventing any such international involvement in the inquiry, will also pledge to combat South African involvement in discussing the political question and the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with India.

The launch comes a day after a damning UN report on the war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the final stages of the armed conflict in 2009 was released. (See more here).

"The nation is in danger as threats of serious nature have emerged in the recent past," the Dr Gunadasa Amarasekara of the National Collective was quoted by the Island as saying.

"It seems that those responsible to face them are either unaware of them or are most probably playing deaf and dumb for their political survival. Their actions do not reflect that they have taken cognisance of these threats coming from international and local fronts. Patriots cannot and should not keep silent in the face of these dangers. Hence, we have decided to mount a nationwide campaign to line up people to exhort the government and leading political parties to adopt a national political agenda."