On the 16th of January 2014, the Officer in Charge (OIC) of the area police visited the premises of the Pastor of the Suveya Doratuwa in Bibile in the Monaragala district and questioned him on the legal validity of the church and if the church was registered. The pastor responded with his right to religious worship as a fundamental right. It is important to note that Sri Lankan legislation does not require religious worship places to be registered.

On the 17th of January 2014, a meeting was convened by the Bodu Bala Sena in the village. The said pastor received information from a verified source that the Buddhist monks gathered had declared to the villagers and all those present at the meeting that they will ensure that the church is closed within one month.

The same night a group of unidentified persons uprooted the church name board from the church premises.

On the 20th of January 2014, at approximately 4. p.m a Buddhist monk together with a villager visited the pastor’s neighbourhood and questioned the neighbours on the services held in the church. The Buddhist monk said that he intends to visit the church with a group of villagers to monitor the Sunday services. This was said aloud with the intention of having the pastor hear what was being discussed

Source:NCEASL(nceasl.org)