The incidents were triggered after the JVP Sahana Seva Balakaya tried to build temporary houses for Sinhala tsunami refugees in the local sports stadium. Tamil residents of the town protested against the move.

Tamil residents protested against blocking out the playground preventing it from it being used by the children. The protesters cordoned off all the main roads leading to the town. A group of Sinhala residents were struggling against the road closures.

A Sinhala youth and a Tamil youth were admitted to hospital as a result of these clashes. The rioters set fire to a van and a lottery stall. According to the police, the van belonged to the Sahana Seva Balakaya.

The Chairman of Trincomalee Patthanamber fisherman’s organisation, P. Amirthanadan blamed the JVP for the incidents. “Since the tsunami disaster, all of us, Sinhala and Tamil people worked and lived together like brothers. Two months later, these people appear from nowhere and tries to build these houses in the playground. They are trying to bring in division between us by building houses just for Sinhalese.”

Deputy Inspector general of Police of Trincomalee, Neville Wijesinghe, asked the JVP to stop disturbing the peace and to stop erecting illegal structures in the playground.

Sinhalese villagers of Samudragama surrounded the Police and the JVP activists. They blamed the JVP of disturbing the harmony by trying to build houses for only one community. They also questioned the absence of the local JVP MP. They asked the JVP to prevent from trying to deceive the villagers.

Head of the Trincomalee Sahana Seva balakaya housing construction unit, Suranag Pryadharshana said, “We have been building temporary houses in Ampara and the other areas of Trincomalee. We started constructing at this playground with the permission of Minister Dinesh Gunawardhana.”

At the end, the Sahana Seva Balakaya had to leave the town with their building material under heavy police protection.