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Sri Lanka church cancels festival
A popular annual festival at a revered Roman Catholic church near the frontlines of Sri Lanka's civil war has been cancelled because the government and Tamil rebels have failed to recognise the area as a peace zone, officials said on Thursday.
- AP
- Published: 23:59 August 7, 2008
Colombo: A popular annual festival at a revered Roman Catholic church near the frontlines of Sri Lanka's civil war has been cancelled because the government and Tamil rebels have failed to recognise the area as a peace zone, officials said on Thursday.
Meanwhile, new fighting in the restive north killed 11 Tamil Tiger rebels and a soldier, the military said.
The 17th century church in Madhu, 210km north of Colombo, attracts thousands of pilgrims every August who come to see a statue of the Virgin Mary believed to have miraculous healing powers.
Roman Catholic Church officials said this year's festival has been cancelled because of safety concerns.
"We do not expect therefore pilgrims this time at Madhu," the Rev Rayappu Joseph, bishop of the northern Mannar region, said in a statement.
The rebels controlled the territory around the church, but abandoned it in April during fighting in the area. Priests fled the church during the fighting and returned only on Wednesday after four months. The priests have repeatedly appealed to both government forces and Tamil rebels to avoid clashes near the shrine.
The church's location along the frontlines of the war has made it a site of tragedy. In 1999, 44 civilians were killed when it was hit by artillery shells. They were among 3,500 people who sought shelter in the church to escape fighting.
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