Source: Google News
Wire Service: AFP
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iO0vtN6iprgTYEyTAR4RoZ_l_FlQ
Sri Lanka's top Buddhist monks called off a special gathering this week because of government pressure, a spokesman said Friday, while the opposition said bomb threats had been involved.
The Buddhist leaders had planned to meet on Thursday to discuss a strategy for pressing the government to release defeated presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka, who was arrested just weeks after contesting last month's elections.
But the gathering at the Temple of the Tooth in the central city of Kandy was called off a day before, with the monks citing concerns for their safety in the "current political climate".
Elaborating Friday, one of their spokesmen, Athangane Ratanapala, said the paramount Buddhist cleric, Thibbotuwawe Sumangala, had been subjected to "severe stress" ahead of the scheduled gathering.