HAMBANTOTA, Sri Lanka: Sri Lankan police used tear gas and water cannons on Saturday to disperse hundreds of stone-throwing demonstrators protesting against a planned investment zone supported by China.
Hospital authorities said at least 21 people were injured in the protests. According to police, 52 demonstrators were arrested.
Protesters say that the government of President Maithripala Sirisena is trying to evict thousands of families to provide 15,000 acres (6,070 hectares) of land in the projected industrial zone for Chinese investors.
The zone is in the southern district of Hambantota, where China has already built a US$1.5 billion port and airport, part of President Sirisena’s ambitious US$50 billion development project to revive the economy.
The government has denied the protesters’ claim and says opposition is driven by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa’s political ambitions.
Rajapaksa, who is trying to make a political comeback, has publicly criticized the plan, saying it will deprive people of agricultural land.
