SMSPU to meet all religious leaders

The State Medical Students’ Parents Union {SMSPU} met several leading Buddhist Bhikkus and scheduled to meet all religious leaders.

But President Maithripala Sirisena, the Higher Education Minister and some other politicians have not given an opportunity for the union to meet them, State Medical Students’ Parents Union Media Spokesman Wasantha Alwis said.

He was addressing the media in Colombo on Monday.

He said the union informed Ven. Muruththettuwe Ananda Thera and Ven. Bengamuwe Nalaka Thera about the danger posed to the free education by the proposed Sir John Kotelawala Defence University Act (2017). “This act violates human rights of Sri Lankans and militarises free education,” he said.

“The President may not be aware of the conspiracy in bringing in the new act. Prominent people who backed the SAITM are behind the issue. They try to get full advantage by bringing in the act. They tarnish the image of tri-forces while privatising the free education,” he said.

“We are against the private medical faculty to be opened inside the Batticaloa Campus. We do not need Muslim or Buddhist private medical faculties and fight against them.

“We are against the Cabinet paper presented to recruit medical students with three simple passes to the medical faculty,” he said.