Catholic Church continues quest for truth as Sri Lanka marks four years since ghastly Easter attacks
April 21, 2023 08:11 am
The Catholic Church in Sri Lanka has decided to form a ‘human chain’ (‘Jana Pavura’) as today (April 21) marks the fourth commemoration of the ghastly bombings on Easter Sunday 2019 which claimed the lives of hundreds and left a long-lasting void in the families and friends of terror attack victims.
The ‘human chain’ is organized in support of the Catholic Church’s quest to seek the long overdue truth behind the brutal carnage on April 21, 2019, and justice for the victims.
The Archbishop of Colombo, His Eminence Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith has invited all Sri Lankans to join the campaign today.
The ‘human chain’, themed “We are Watching until Justice is Meted Out”, was initiated at 8.00 a.m. this morning and it will be formed from St. Anthony’s Church in Kochchikade to St. Sebastian’s Church in Katuwapitiya on the Colombo-Negombo main road.
Meanwhile, a march was organized from St. Sebastian’s Church in Katuwapitiya to St. Anthony’s Church in Kochchikade last night and a special church service was also held in parallel with the march.
A special commemoration event and a Mass, led by Cardinal Ranjith and Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Biran Udaigwe, will be held at the St. Anthony’s Church in Kochchikade from 8.00 a.m.
It is be attended by the ambassadors and high commissioners of several countries including China, the United States and the United Kingdom.
A two-minute silence will also be observed at 8.45 a.m. in memory of the victims of the brutal terror attack.
The country was left devastated on April 21, 2019 after a group of suicide attackers of the now-outlawed local Islamic extremist organization National Thowheed Jamaat (NTJ) carried out a series of coordinated bomb blasts at St. Anthony’s Church in Kochchikade, St. Sebastian’s Church in Katuwapitiya, Zion Church in Batticaloa, Cinnamon Grand, Kingsbury and Shangri-La hotels in Colombo and a guest house in Dehiwala, leaving more than 260 people including foreigners dead and at least 500 people injured.
Sri Lanka declared a state of emergency immediately after the bombings and the probes launched into the incident led to the arrest of many who have had links to the suicide bombers.
The Sri Lankan Catholic Church led by Cardinal Ranjith and the families of the victims have continuously raised concerns and doubts about slow progress of the investigations into the attacks, accusing the government of sweeping the truth under the rug for political gains.
