Sri Lankans display solidarity with Pakistan against NATO attack

Dec 09, Colombo: Thousands of Sri Lankans gathered in Colombo on Friday after the Jumma prayers to condemn the actions of NATO/US-ISAF coalition and to denounce the unprovoked attacks of last month that resulted in the deaths of over two-dozen Pakistani soldiers.

The Sri Lanka Pakistan Friendship Association along with Pakistani community in Sri Lanka organized a peaceful demonstration today outside the Devatagagha Mosque in Town Hall, Colombo to protest against the recent NATO attack on Pakistan's military check posts on Afghanistan border.
The Governor of Western Province Alevi Maulana, several Sri Lankan government ministers including Minister Mervyn De Silva, Deputy Mayor of Colombo Municipal Council and several high profile personalities participated in the peaceful protest against the attack, which Pakistan says a blatant violation of its air and ground space.

Protesters including journalists, government employees, lawyers and members of civil society gathered near the Colombo Municipal Council building complex and asked the US and NATO to "Stop terrorizing Pakistan".

A heavy contingent of police was present to provide security to the protesters and to ensure peaceful demonstration. No unwanted incidents took place throughout the protest.

The organizers of the demonstration, Pakistan Sri Lanka Friendship Association, ministers and representatives of political parties addressed protesters and called for a resolute stand against the aggression. They termed the NATO attack as blatant aggression and terrorism, and appealed to the international community to stop such violations.

Pakistan says the attack was unprovoked and officials call it an act of blatant aggression. The United States, which considers Pakistan is critical to bring a settlement to Afghanistan before their planned combat troops pull out in 2014, rejects the accusation.

The speakers of the rally expressed the opinion that the US had begun an undeclared war on Pakistan and accused that its drones had killed thousands of innocent citizens in tribal areas in the name of collateral damages.

The demonstrators pointed out that West displays double standard strategy in targeting Muslim nations while showing a blind eye to their own perpetrations.

They also highlighted that US is pressing Sri Lanka to inquire into the just ended 30 year old civil war, where the Sri Lankan government justifiably used its resources to crush and eliminate the terrorist group LTTE, while killing the innocent people in the name of democracy and peace in other countries.

The demonstrators accused that the Channel 4 documentaries were a pseudo production of LTTE and its western backers seems to have tacit support of the United States.

The protesters said that on one hand the West is bullying Sri Lanka over its ambitious and successful war against terror, while on the other hand the US itself is covertly and overtly killing innocent people throughout the world by concocting 'terrorism theory� for their blatant violation of sovereign nations.

Pakistan outraged by the NATO attack has suspended supply routes to NATO forces in Afghanistan.

The US-Pakistani relationship has deteriorated following the US raid in May that killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.