VIDEO: Death of the FTZ worker was caused by a ‘misfire’

The death of the Free Trade Zone (FTZ) worker in Katunayake at the hands of police gunfire did not warrant such harsh punishment as it was a misfire which prevented a far worse situation, Minister of Public Relations and Public Affairs, Mervyn Silva stated.

He said that although he deeply regretted the incident at the Katunayake FTZ, he did not think it was a crime that deserved a great punishment.

Minister Silva explained that he had met with the police officers who had been incarcerated for the incident at the Negombo prison as he said that the incident had occurred with no intent to cause harm.

After expressing his disapproval of the action taken against the two police officers, he added that when a group threatens the peace of the country it is the job of the police to ensure that the peace is kept. The Minister stated that there is no restriction on what the police can use to do this although the incident was a clear accident.

Furthermore, he blamed the JVP and the UNP for instigating the protest in order to bring the FTZ to a standstill and to ruin the economy of the country.