The church and furniture in Talahena, Malabe, damaged by mobs on July 6 (inset) Ven. Ellawela Medhananda Thero and Ven. Galagodatta Gnasasara TheroLawyer chased out by mob inside police station...
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Abeygunawardene asks church to stop Sunday Service...
Gotabaya concerned church attacks will lead to international repercussions...
A worried Basil moves to mediate...
Champika says Christians would not dare build churches in Muslim areas...
Attacks on Christian places of worship are on the rise again this time the flash point being Kalutara with Buddhist monk-led mobs allegedly issuing death threats to pastors.
On the morning of August 3, as pastor Stanley Royston of the Assembly of God Church in Kalutara held his Sunday morning service Buddhist monks tried to storm the church with a mob. As the police tried to hold back the marauders Nation Building Minister and Kalutara MP Rohitha Abeygunawardena's Secretary arrived on the scene. He dispersed the crowd requesting Pastor Royston to either meet at the temple or the Minister's house. Pastor Royston however requested a neutral spot and the next day, August 4, they met at the Town Hall.Minister Abeygunawardena was present with the OIC of the area, other police officers and the government agent.The Minister however did not grant the pastor a hearing merely telling him he would have to shut down his church if he could not show registration papers with the Municipality and the Cultural Ministry.Cultural Affairs Minister Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena however already denied to The Sunday Leader that any such regulation concerning his Ministry existed regarding any place of worship.Meanwhile earlier in July, Buddhist monks in the area had protested, calling for the closure of the church. The threats prompted Pastor Royston to lodge a complaint with the Kalutara North Police. On July 31, he was summoned to the police station for an inquiry and he went accompanied by his lawyer Prasanna Sandanayake.The duo were met by a host of Buddhist monks and an unruly mob inside the police station even as Buddhist monks manhandled the lawyer and chased him away. They also allegedly threatened the pastor with death as Acting OIC Bopitiya and other police officers watched helplessly.The monks threatened the pastor not to conduct any more Sunday services and to close down the church the very next day. When the pastor tried to speak about his right to minister to the congregation they whipped out a letter from the Municipality stating the church was not registered with them.With the situation becoming untenable the AOG church was compelled to retain legal counsel and on August 5, Denzil Gunaratne PC together with senior lawyer Asoka Weerasuriya were to make legal representations to the Attorney General, C.R. De Silva on behalf of the church.Ironically the church had been in existence for as long as independent Sri Lanka, since 1948. The current pastor who heads the church, Pastor Stanley Royston had pastored the church since 1995. According to the written submissions made to the AG, the Assembly of God church is an internationally recognised entity since 1921 and incorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1948.The letter called for the Attorney General to instruct the police, DIG Chandana Wickremaratne and the SSP Kalutara to ensure that the right of worship of the pastor and the congregation is upheld, especially for the Sunday service of August 10.On Sunday 10, a mob was to proceed towards the church with intent to create havoc but the service went deliberately undisturbed as police protection had by this time been provided following representations made to the Attorney General.Thereafter, throughout the week demonstrations had been held against the church up until the time of writing.It is learnt that churches are now also seeking the advice of other senior counsel such as Faisz Musthapha in order to counter through the law of the land a wave of rights abuse that is set to take place in the near future.With the attacks increasing in intensity and frequency and an environment of oppression prevalent, many of these churches have been compelled to take up their case in courts of law while others have appealed to the Attorney General to take action and petitioned President Mahinda Rajapakse.
President Rajapakse's wife is a devout Catholic and his three sons have been educated at one of the most prominent Anglican schools in the country, S. Thomas' College.The latest modus operandi for oppression say sources, is multi pronged.First there are allegations of churches harbouring LTTE terrorists. The second is trotting out little known or non existent rules and regulations at Municipality level in order to curtail religious freedom.For instance say sources, churches seeking to expand their building are told by the UDA that no expansion whatsoever can be carried out unless 66% of the local population approves of it. With only 7% Christians in the country, such an approval rating, given the enmity and insecurity that has been fuelled by a nationalistic government, would be nigh impossible.
On the morning of August 3, as pastor Stanley Royston of the Assembly of God Church in Kalutara held his Sunday morning service Buddhist monks tried to storm the church with a mob. As the police tried to hold back the marauders Nation Building Minister and Kalutara MP Rohitha Abeygunawardena's Secretary arrived on the scene. He dispersed the crowd requesting Pastor Royston to either meet at the temple or the Minister's house. Pastor Royston however requested a neutral spot and the next day, August 4, they met at the Town Hall.Minister Abeygunawardena was present with the OIC of the area, other police officers and the government agent.The Minister however did not grant the pastor a hearing merely telling him he would have to shut down his church if he could not show registration papers with the Municipality and the Cultural Ministry.Cultural Affairs Minister Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena however already denied to The Sunday Leader that any such regulation concerning his Ministry existed regarding any place of worship.Meanwhile earlier in July, Buddhist monks in the area had protested, calling for the closure of the church. The threats prompted Pastor Royston to lodge a complaint with the Kalutara North Police. On July 31, he was summoned to the police station for an inquiry and he went accompanied by his lawyer Prasanna Sandanayake.The duo were met by a host of Buddhist monks and an unruly mob inside the police station even as Buddhist monks manhandled the lawyer and chased him away. They also allegedly threatened the pastor with death as Acting OIC Bopitiya and other police officers watched helplessly.The monks threatened the pastor not to conduct any more Sunday services and to close down the church the very next day. When the pastor tried to speak about his right to minister to the congregation they whipped out a letter from the Municipality stating the church was not registered with them.With the situation becoming untenable the AOG church was compelled to retain legal counsel and on August 5, Denzil Gunaratne PC together with senior lawyer Asoka Weerasuriya were to make legal representations to the Attorney General, C.R. De Silva on behalf of the church.Ironically the church had been in existence for as long as independent Sri Lanka, since 1948. The current pastor who heads the church, Pastor Stanley Royston had pastored the church since 1995. According to the written submissions made to the AG, the Assembly of God church is an internationally recognised entity since 1921 and incorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1948.The letter called for the Attorney General to instruct the police, DIG Chandana Wickremaratne and the SSP Kalutara to ensure that the right of worship of the pastor and the congregation is upheld, especially for the Sunday service of August 10.On Sunday 10, a mob was to proceed towards the church with intent to create havoc but the service went deliberately undisturbed as police protection had by this time been provided following representations made to the Attorney General.Thereafter, throughout the week demonstrations had been held against the church up until the time of writing.It is learnt that churches are now also seeking the advice of other senior counsel such as Faisz Musthapha in order to counter through the law of the land a wave of rights abuse that is set to take place in the near future.With the attacks increasing in intensity and frequency and an environment of oppression prevalent, many of these churches have been compelled to take up their case in courts of law while others have appealed to the Attorney General to take action and petitioned President Mahinda Rajapakse.
President Rajapakse's wife is a devout Catholic and his three sons have been educated at one of the most prominent Anglican schools in the country, S. Thomas' College.The latest modus operandi for oppression say sources, is multi pronged.First there are allegations of churches harbouring LTTE terrorists. The second is trotting out little known or non existent rules and regulations at Municipality level in order to curtail religious freedom.For instance say sources, churches seeking to expand their building are told by the UDA that no expansion whatsoever can be carried out unless 66% of the local population approves of it. With only 7% Christians in the country, such an approval rating, given the enmity and insecurity that has been fuelled by a nationalistic government, would be nigh impossible.
By Sonali Samarasinghe
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