This blog has long had an interest in Fortean News from around the world, so our interest was much intrigued by a tale from Sri Lanka of the activities of the notorious "Grease Devils" .... a name given to malevolent men who smear themselves in grease to avoid being caught.
Apparently the panic has been caused by (or been the cause of), large swathes of the country being gripped by a fear of 'nocturnal prowlers', who have frequented rural areas apparently assaulting women at night.
Of course in this part of the world once the stories started, the mob violence was quickly underway and a series of brutal retaliatory vigilante attacks have left people murdered.
The police and army have arrested hundreds and even deployed tanks ...... but the panic currently shows no sign of abating. Interestingly those reporting attacks from "grease devils" have been Muslim or Tamil rather than the majority Sinhalese community .... perhaps the triumphant Sinhalese feel confident enough, to not fear prowlers in the night?
What with the End of the World coming so often this year, and conspiracies knowing no limit in their scope, why anyone would think we were living in the "End Of Days".
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| "Grease Devils" Have A Long History In Sri Lanka |
Of course in this part of the world once the stories started, the mob violence was quickly underway and a series of brutal retaliatory vigilante attacks have left people murdered.
The police and army have arrested hundreds and even deployed tanks ...... but the panic currently shows no sign of abating. Interestingly those reporting attacks from "grease devils" have been Muslim or Tamil rather than the majority Sinhalese community .... perhaps the triumphant Sinhalese feel confident enough, to not fear prowlers in the night?
What with the End of the World coming so often this year, and conspiracies knowing no limit in their scope, why anyone would think we were living in the "End Of Days".
Really strange what each culture comes up with as its 'devils'. In Mexico they have some spiney backed creatures called the 'Goat Sucker' (aka Chupacabra), and of course we had the 'Bogeyman' when I was a kid.
ReplyDeleteWasn't 'Spring Heeled Jack' a Victorian 'Grease Devil? I seem to recall a movie about "The Moth Man" which was a more recent US 'urban legend' in the West.
We all have our 'legends' about what creeps about in the night time.
I looked, and the panic was over by end of August. At least it was no longer generating international news stories after that time. I wonder if this a cyclical story - a bit like in those 'Jeepers Creepers' movies, and they will return in a decade or so?
DeleteThanks for the comments (both of you?) ..... yes it was a short-lived phenomenon once exposed to the glare of publicity (like most of these events). It actually led to a large number of deaths and injuries .....
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