Sri Lanka on Tuesday extended by another month the state of emergency imposed after the assassination of then Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar in August last year, despite protests by minority Tamil legislators.
The tough laws giving sweeping powers to police and security forces to arrest suspects were passed amid protests by the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) legislators, who staged a walkout from the Parliament and staged a sit-down.
"End state terrorism," said a banner carried by the TNA legislators.
The TNA, a proxy of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), wanted the government to lift the emergency and open peace talks with the rebels.
The state of emergency was imposed shortly after the assassination of Kadirgamar by a suspected Tiger sniper.
The government accused the rebels of carrying out the killing, a claim they rejected.
Meanwhile, the Tiger rebels asked Japanese peace envoy Yasushi Akashi to help bring foreign pressure on the Sri Lankan government to scale down violence and open talks.
Colombo has blamed the Tigers for the spike in violence.
{{/usCountry}}Colombo has blamed the Tigers for the spike in violence.
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