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Mob stops TI’s workshop: Police role questioned
View(s):A three-day workshop on investigative journalism organised by Transparency International (TI) came to an abrupt end on its second day in Negombo yesterday when a mob staged a protest outside the hotel where it was being held, organisers said. They said the police on safety grounds requested the participants and the trainers to leave the hotel premises immediately.
The mob carrying placards claimed they were protectors of the motherland and wanted the organisers to stop the residential workshop for 14 Tamil journalists.
“They were a well organised mob. The placards carried my photograph and those of other trainers. They called themselves as members of the ‘Movement for National Unity’ but we are not sure if such an organisation exists,” Transparency International’s Senior Manager Shan Wijetunga said.
He said the police discussed with the mob and informed us that the protesters were demanding that the TI team should leave immediately. “I was left with 14 journalists here. The police could not protect us, though they said they would ensure we were not harmed when we left the hotel,” he said. Police spokesperson SSP Ajith Rohana said a ‘peaceful’ demonstration was held outside the hotel. However, he was unable to explain why the police could not provide security to the organisers to continue with the workshop.