Sri Lanka refutes allegations of Navy firing at fishermen

Denying that its navy had entered Indian waters and fired at Indian fishermen off Kodiakarai coast, Sri Lanka today said it was committed to "not using force and extending all humane treatment to all fishermen at all times."
Reacting to reports of alleged firing at Indian fishermen by the Lankan Navy off the Kodiakarai coast, the Sri Lankan Deputy High Commission here said in a statement that an "investigation revealed that Sri Lankan naval vessels had not entered Indian waters at any time either on March 6 or 7 as alleged."
"It was further revealed that no Sri Lankan naval craft had opened fire at any fishing vessel or any other object on March 6 or 7 in the area," the statement said.

Sri Lankan navy expressed concern over the large number of fishermen from Southern India crossing the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) and fishing in Sri Lankan waters on a regular basis, it said, confirming the arrest of 16 fishermen poaching in Lankan waters off the north-western coast on March 3.
The statement said the Lankan Navy reiterates its commitment to "not use force under any circumstances and extend humane treatment to all fishermen at all times."
A 40-year-old fisherman from Karaikal in Union Territory of Puducherry, part of a group of fishermen who had put to sea from Kodiakarai in Tamil Nadu's Nagapattinam district, was injured in the shoulder when Lankan Navy allegedly fired at their fishing boats.

Sixteen fishermen from the state were detained by Lankan Navy on Sunday last, prompting Chief Minister Jayalalithaa to write to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh seeking his intervention to secure their early release.
"I am pained to point out that the incidents of apprehension and harassment of innocent Indian fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy have become a regular occurrence in the past few months creating a feeling of insecurity and fear among the fishermen community," she had said.