Amnesty's agenda irks Sri Lanka

Colombo: Dozens of members of a Sri Lankan nationalist group demonstrated on Thursday against Amnesty International's use of the Cricket World Cup to highlight human rights abuses in the country.

About 80 protesters from the National Patriotic Front, including some Buddhist monks, shouted slogans against the London-based group in front of Colombo's main railroad station and urged it to be fair toward the cricket-loving country.

Amnesty International has used the Cricket World Cup, currently being held in the West Indies, to urge the Sri Lankan government and ethnic Tamil rebels to respect human rights under the slogan "Play by the rules."

"Just as all cricket teams need an independent umpire to make objective decisions, so too does Sri Lanka need independent human rights monitors to ensure the Sri Lankan government, Tamil Tigers and other armed groups respect the rules and protect civilians caught up in the conflict," Tim Parritt, Amnesty International's deputy Asia Pacific director, said in an earlier statement.

Free Media Movement, an independent body that campaigns for media freedom and human rights in Sri Lanka, has said it opposes the Amnesty International campaign despite it being well intended.

"Cricket is a powerful bond that unifies all communities in Sri Lanka and offers a war-weary nation an important psycho-social release," it said in a statement.

Sri Lanka's government also criticised the campaign, saying the national cricket team is comprised of all Sri Lankan ethnic groups, and urged Amnesty International not to mix politics with sports.