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Speaking at the parliament on 9th March, State Minister of tourism Diana Gamage stated that
people will attack the protesters soon, as the protesters are trying to sabotage the gradually
reviving economy. “Now, foreign exchanges are slowly flowing into the country. We saw
tourists coming. What a joke are you playing when they are coming? You are trying to bring
back the ‘cinnamon sticks age’. Because of this, people will assault those who are protesting, as the public is fed up with this. Tourists are unable to get outside the hotels, as they have been intimidated and stuck inside hotel premises. What a joke is this? Please stop this immediately” she said. ‘Cinnamon stick attack’ refers to an incident in October 2013 of attacking the participants of a protest march led by a group of dissident MPs in the United National Party (UNP), with cinnamon sticks while it was passing through the Matara town. A group led by former MP late Mangala Samaraweera who supported Ranil Wickramasinghe’s leadership attacked the protest that was organised by several dissident MPs who protested against Wickramasinghe’s leadership.