By Norman Palihawadana

The Students’ Union of University of Ruhuna yesterday claimed that a gang of persons believed to be supporters of a powerful minister on Tuesday night stripped a member of the union and then assaulted him at Matara.

The victim identified as Dissanayake was among a large number of students assaulted by the gang that carried out a series of brutal attacks on the students. A senior union spokesman said that goons used several vehicles belonging to the minister. However, police had failed to take action against the group, he said claiming that police acting on orders of their political masters were trying to put the blame on the students.

Dissanayake had been stripped on the road and then assaulted by several persons. Later, he was admitted to Karapitiya hospital, the spokesman said stressing that Tuesday’s attack was a part of the ongoing government sponsored campaign to harass student groups engaged in anti-government protests over plans to do away with free education.

The student union alleged that the same minister was responsible for the attack carried out by an armed gang on the same day morning which had stormed the student council office at the Ruhuna University.

In this incident the gang had assaulted two students and seized 15,000 booklets after throwing out typewriters belonging to the students union and damaging furniture and fittings. The students union alleged that this was a brazen confrontation by the government to undermine its determined efforts to protest against the privatisation of education by the government.

The secretary to the Ministry of Education R. P. Gunawardane had already announced officially regarding a bill to be presented in the parliament to establish a private university.

The tense situation in Ruhuna University, which saw two students being hospitalised subsequent to an alleged attack by a group of outsiders on Wednesday, is showing signs of escalating into a tragedy of huge proportions, Ravindra Mudalige, the President of the Student Union said yesterday.

Mudalige told The Island that the previous day's incident was a pre-emptive attempt on the part of thugs employed by prominent politicians of the area to disrupt the island-wide agitational campaign organised by the Inter University Student Federation to protest what they believe to be deliberate attempts to destroy free education by the government as per World Bank and Paris Aid Group recommendations.

The students of Ruhuna University had held a demonstration in Matara from 10 to 11 last morning to protest the attack as well as the interference of politicians in the internal affairs of the university community. Thereafter the students had distributed a leaflet titled "Parapuraka Urumaya Udesa" (for the heritage of a generation...). Some of the female students engaged in the demonstration had been threatened by unknown persons, Mudalige said.

According to Mudalige, they had been informed around noon that a group of around 50 men, armed with bicycle chains and batons had entered the university premises, allegedly looking for student leaders. These persons, unable to get hold of the student leaders, had proceeded to destroy property belonging to the Student Union, including the tearing down of "wall newspapers".

The students had then complained to the police and had gone to the university along with some policemen. The thugs were still within the university premises and the police had said that they were not empowered to search these persons nor ask them to leave, Mudalige alleged.

The Vice Chancellor is yet to agree to meet with the students to discuss what Mudalige described as a volatile and dangerous situation at the time of going to press.

Matara police said that the two students had been stabbed and have been admitted to Matara and Karapitiya hospitals.

Meanwhile, six students said to be from Ruhuna University had been arrested yesterday sequel to a fight between two factions of university students at the Matara bus stand.

Three students have been injured in this fight, police sources said.

HQI Matara police, A. Hettiarachchi commenting on the incident said that as far as he was aware no outsiders interfered to assault the injured students.

Matara police is carrying out further investigations under the directions of Southern Division DIG M. Seevaratnam.