The 09th of August has been declared as the “national day of protest” (Jathika Virodatha Dinaya) by members of the anti-government protest movement, more commonly known as the ‘Aragalaya’.

According to the ‘Aragalaya’, the “national day of protest” will be commemorated in their respective cities and regions.

According to sources, people will gather in their own towns to protest against several key issues.

The issues include state repression, especially demanding that the government to dissolve Parliament, abolish the state of emergency, emergency law, and the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA).

They will also demand that the government releases all protestors who have been arrested and cease the hunting down of protestors.

Activists and human rights organizations have described a systematic targeting of figures who are prominent in the protest movement.

More than 100 people, including a Buddhist monk, have been arrested and the courts have issued travel bans against several protestors.

The Police have raided protestors’ family homes, and security agencies have taken activists off the streets and questioned them for hours.

According to the ‘Aragalaya’, a leaflet of new demands and the way forward is to be distributed during the regional protests on the “national day of protest”. (NewsWire)