Sri Lanka Police on Thursday released a nationwide traffic and security plan for International Workers’ Day, with multiple rallies, processions and meetings scheduled in Colombo and across the island on Friday, May 1.
The Police Media Division said the Inspector General has directed all stations to ensure peaceful events, manage traffic flow and maintain road safety while keeping vehicular movement as normal as possible. Senior Deputy Inspectors General in charge of provinces have been assigned oversight of arrangements for outstation rallies in Anuradhapura, Kurunegala, Kandy, Matale, Nuwara Eliya, Ratnapura, Kegalle, Galle, Matara and Kalutara.
The largest gathering will be the National People’s Power rally at the public car park of the National Youth Services Council in Maharagama, with diversions implemented across the Maharagama Police Division. Other political parties and trade unions have planned processions along designated routes in Colombo, with the Police releasing a series of detailed traffic maps for the city.
The deployment lands at the close of a politically charged week. The SJB invited the UNP to its Maligawatta rally as a unity gesture, but the UNP declined and separately announced it would not hold a May Day rally in deference to the Vesak Poya weekend.
Police asked the public to plan travel around the Colombo diversions and noted that the arrangements aim to balance freedom of assembly with public safety. Detailed maps for each rally venue were published through the Police Media Division.
In an evening update, DIG in charge of Traffic Control and Road Safety W.P.J. Senadheera said comprehensive arrangements were in place across the island and that “special security measures have been put in place, with deployments made based on intelligence reports.”
Sources: Ada Derana, Ada Derana, NewsFirst, Newswire.
