Attack on SLMC Registrar: Ex-Air Force man taken in

Medical unions condemn assault

By Mirudhula Thambiah

One of the men involved in the attack on Dr. N.J Nonis, the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) Registrar was identified as an ex-Air Force man who had left the forces a year ago, police said. Moratuwa OIC Upula Seneviratne said the suspect was remanded until October 14 and the identification parade will take place tomorrow. The OIC said the man was arrested in Panadura after the number of the motorcycle the suspects were riding was traced. “When the suspect was questioned on the attack he has denied any involvement,” he said. The GMOA holding a news conference on Wednesday over the the attack He said, however, the motive of the attack is yet to be determined. Dr. Nonis was allegedly assaulted by two unidentified men, who came on a motorcycle last Tuesday evening while Dr. Nonis was returning to his residence in Moratuwa after work. The two unidentified men had been following and then overtaking Dr.Nonis’s vehicle. When Dr. Nonis reached his premises at 7 p.m., one of the unidentified men had come near the doctor’s vehicle and shown him a piece of paper which included the name of Dr. Nonis as well as three GMOA committee members. The Sunday Times learns that the names on the piece of paper were hand written and at the end of the paper, there were the initials of a well-known politician’s name. While reading the piece of paper, Dr. Nonis was beaten by one of the unidentified men with a batten rolled in paper. Dr. Nonis was not hospitalized immediately but was admitted the next day since he had a wound on his neck. Dr. Nonis had cried for help, but when his neighbours reached the scene, the suspects had escaped. Meanwhile many medical officers’ trade unions condemned the attack on Dr. Nonis. The SLMC and the GMOA jointly launched a token strike while the Government Dental Surgeons’ Association (GDSA) also resorted to an island wide trade union action on Wednesday. The councils and the membership of the Sri Lanka Colleges of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Paediatricians and Surgeons and the Ceylon College of Physicians are said to be deeply concerned at the assault on Dr. Nonis. Their statement says, “Such behaviour is by no means acceptable. We wish to request the government of Sri Lanka to take all necessary action to bring the assailants before the law urgently. The government has a duty to ensure that such acts where people take the law into their own hands in trying to coerce the Sri Lanka Medical Council to accede to their demands do not take place in future. Such incidents will jeopardise and compromise medical education and health care in the community”.