Former Sri Lankan Cricketers Jayawardena, Sangakkara, and Jayasuriya Urge Countrymen to Keep Calm During Emergency

Former Sri Lanka players Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardena and Sanath Jayasuriya came forward and put forth their views, against the ongoing communal violence in Sri Lanka, on their respective social media accounts. Taking to the micro-blogging site Twitter, the Sri Lankan legends urged the people of Sri Lanka to keep calm and condemned the reports of violence in the country. Their response, after Sri Lanka witnessed Emergency being imposed in the country, is simply heart-warming.

Former Sri Lanka captain, Mahela Jayawardena, led the bandwagon and was first among the three to come forward with his views. Jayawardena condemned the recent acts of violence and talked about he grew up during the times of civil war. Read Mahela Jayawardena’s tweet here:

I strongly condemn the recent acts of violence & everyone involved must be brought to justice regardless of race/ religion or ethnicity. I grew up in a civil war which lasted 25 years and don’t want the next generation to go through that.

— Mahela Jayawardena (@MahelaJay) March 7, 2018

Taking a cue from his former captain, Sangakkara urged the people in Sri Lanka to stand together and stand strong. Read Kumar Sangakkara’s tweet here:

No one in Sri Lanka can be marginalized or threatened or harmed due to their ethnicity or religion. We are One Country and One people. Love, trust and acceptance should be our common mantra. No place for racism and violence. STOP. Stand together and stand strong.

— Kumar Sangakkara (@KumarSanga2) March 7, 2018

The former Sri Lankan team Selector, Sanath Jayasuriya, too added his two cents to the prevalent situation in the country. Jayasuriya requested people of the country to stay wise in these tough times. Read Sanath Jayasuria’s tweet here:

Disgusting and sickening to see the acts of violence in Sri Lanka. I condemn strongly and to bring the involved culprits to justice. I request people of Sri Lanka to be wise and stay together in these tough times

— Sanath Jayasuriya (@Sanath07) March 7, 2018

The condemnation from the iconic Sri Lankan cricketers garnered huge praise from people on the internet. People drew a sharp contrast between the Sri Lankan players and Indian celebrities. Their anguish was directed at how Indian celebrities chose to stay silent on such critical issues, or, on the other hand, give a communal colour to every bit.

Sri Lanka imposed a state of Emergency for a period of 10 days on March 06, 2018. Sri Lanka President Maithripala Sirisena declared Emergency in the country to maintain law and order situation after reports of communal violence between Buddhists and Muslim groups arose..

There were speculations that the tri-nation T20 series, Nidahas Trophy 2018, involving Sri Lanka, India, and Bangladesh would be scrapped, but they were put to rest as both BCCI and SLC confirmed the continuation of the series.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 07, 2018 08:29 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).