11.14PM, 5th March 2013: Families of the disappeared in Sri Lanka, traveling to attend a demonstration in front of Colombo UN office, were detained in Vavuniya by the Police. Eleven buses with victimised Tamil people were en route to Colombo to stage a demonstration in Colombo tomorrow to coincide with the submission of the US resolution on Sri Lanka at the UN human rights Council.
All the eleven buses and a total of around 700 individuals were hindered in their progress. The bus drivers were questioned by TID and CID members.
This evening, when they tried to pass Omanthai check post after all the security procedures were completed, a special Police escort came and took them to Vavuniya. At present, all the families are being kept under heavy military presence amid heavy rain in Vavuniya’s Urban Council Ground.
A short whole ago some unidentified people in civilian dress tried to infiltrate the crowed in an attempt to trouble them.
9.21am, 6th March 2013: BBC correspondent Charles Haviland has tweeted about this incident, quoting political Mano Ganesan.
Army in north #srilanka blocks relatives of #disappeared from coming to Colombo for protest rally, says politician @manoganesan. #lka #tamil
— Charles Haviland (@cfhaviland) March 6, 2013
Campaigner @manoganesan also says well-armed sec forces blocking fams of #disappeared from taking petition to local gov Vavuniya/north #lka.
— Charles Haviland (@cfhaviland) March 6, 2013