News
Lankan-origin candidate at UK polls receives death threats
In an unexpected twist to a hard fought British election, a Conservative candidate of Sri Lankan ancestry has threatened to sue incumbent MP for Cambridge from the Liberal Democratic Party who is one of her opponents and who she accuses of having distorted her remarks about mental health patients. Meanwhile the candidate Chamali Fernando has received death threats after her remarks at city discussion were distorted leading to the public being misinformed that she wanted persons with mental health problems to wear wristbands so they could be easily identified. Messages have been left on her voicemail threatening violence leading to her deactivating her Twitter account, Cambridge sources reported.
Chamali Fernando
Attempts to contact Chamali Fernando failed. Her mobile phone went unanswered. Chamali Fernando, a barrister and an adviser to the campaign fighting for the creation of an international court for the environment, had written through her lawyers to her Lib Dem opponent Julian Huppert demanding a public apology and legal costs for comments he made to the media following discussion of the national health service, one of the key topics at the May 7 general election where the issue of mental health came up. In the absence of such an apology, Chamali Fernando had indicated that defamation proceedings will be commenced seeking “substantial” damages, according to a report in Varsity News of Cambridge.
Subsequent reports in Cambridge News said that Julian Huppert has said he will not apologise and that Fernando’s legal claim is “without merit”.
The controversy revolves round the very touchy subject of mental health which along with that of disabled (or differently-abled) persons are usually dealt with great care and sensitivity.
Fernando said that as a barrister she is aware that they, health authorities and even the police have difficulties in communicating with mentally-ill persons and they with the authorities. She had suggested that it would be helpful if there is some way of identifying such persons so the issue could be dealt at an early stage instead of waiting for later diagnosis. One such way was for an identity tag such as a wristband being attached.
But her words had been distorted to say that Fernando said that those with mental health issues should or ought to wear wristbands, which is not what she had said according to a transcript of a recording made of the meeting and published later in a local paper. At the time Fernando made her remarks Julian Huppert who was present made no comment. But later he had issued a statement saying Fernando’s suggestion was “shocking.”