Sri Lanka Thowheed Jama’ath (SLTJ) organisation has today condemned the statement made in Parliament by the Minister of Justice Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe about the Muslim community. They have also responded to the allegations levelled against the Muslims by the minister.
We publish below the statement issued by Sri Lanka Thowheed Jama’ath by in full:
On last 18.11.2016, Hon. Minister of Justice, Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe
addressed in parliament about the steps that the government of Sri Lanka
has taken with regard to restraining the racialist activities in Sri
Lanka. While accepting the minister’s views about taking severe legal
action against those who involve and sow the racism in the country, we
totally find fault on the knot that the minister has made between
terrorism and Islamic organizations together with religious education
institutes.
ISIS terrorists must be eradicated
Hon. Minister recorded a view point that 32 members of 4 Muslim
families from Sri Lanka have gone to Syria to join the international
terrorist movement, ISIS and the Sri Lankan people are much frightened
with regard to it. Indeed, for the first time, the said view that some
Jihad groups functioning in Sri Lanka have connection with ISIS is a
point that was spread in Sri Lanka in the previous government.
However, the then Defence Secretary refused this opinion and issued a
denial report in public saying that it is not only the wrong statement
but also Sri Lanka has not got such an organization. Even when if it was
later confirmed that a few members of a single family from Sri Lanka
have gone to Syria to attach ISIS, the whole Muslims living in Sri Lanka
and the total Islamic religious and civil organizations together
fervently condemned this activity and had declared that ISIS was a
vulgar terrorist organization and their entire agenda were un-Islamic.
All the Muslims in person and with their organizations strongly said in
their statements and reports that the activities of ISIS had no a minute
connection with Islam and the entire Muslims in Sri Lanka were
unsupportive to any form of terrorism.
No any Muslims in Sri Lanka agree with terrorism or terrorist
activities. Thowheed Jama’ath, on behalf of all the Muslims in Sri
Lanka, request the government of Sri Lanka to take necessary measures to
immediately arrest any individual person or an organization if they
keep link with any terrorist organization in Sri Lanka or outside the
country.
When the situation is in such a condition, a matter that was wrongly
spread a long ago against a particular community in the country and the
proper answer was also given at the same time by the same community
individually and organizationally, how a responsible Minister, all of a
sudden, superficially without looking at the people, place, time and the
situation can reveal such a statement in Parliament when the racist
waves are intentionally being raised in the country against Muslims.
This would definitely increase the density of the problem and fearing in
all societies rather than reducing. We therefore would like to bring
this matter to the utmost consideration of the Minister that tying all
Muslims and Islamic organizations with terrorism will sharpen the volume
of the issue between multicultural communities in our mother land.
Are Muslims brainwashed for terrorism in Islamic Religious Schools?
In Hon. Minister’s speech, he accused that the foreign Islamic
scholars who come to Islamic international schools in Sri Lanka are
teaching terrorist views to Muslim students in order to wash their
brains towards terrorism. This false accusation was also spread in Sri
Lanka by some racist movements in the majority community of the country
in the ex-president Mahinda Rajapaksa’s regime and the Muslims community
and its organizations clearly answered to this allegation at the time
of its arrival.
If such incidents are occurred in Muslims educational institutes as
per the statement of the Hon. Minister, we earnestly request the
Minister to take necessary action against such Islamic schools on the
basis of the proper evidence and proofs.
These allegations have been put forwarded in Sri Lanka as rumours
since the year 2012 without giving any single proof. A racist or a
racist movement can spread a false message of this nature, but it is
unfortunate that an Hon. Minister of Justice being in a very accountable
position expresses such a fake statement through his tongue which is
fiercely pricking the hearts and minds of helpless Muslim community of
this mother Lanka. We undoubtedly consider that this statement would
have created a flawed sight in the mind of other religious followers
with regard to Muslims’ educational institutes.
We are very much sad to mention herewith that it is unfortunate, that
the Minister’s notions about Muslims’ educational institutes are like
pouring kerosene in the flaming fire of racism in Sri Lanka at the
movement.
Are there fightings of religious sects among Muslims only?
Another viewpoint that the Hon. Minister has put forwarded is that
Muslims are fighting among themselves with divisions of religious
thoughts and views. It is natural that there are different kinds of
religious sects with various opinions and views within a major religion.
Such divisions are irreparable in any religion in the world. Muslims
are not exceptional to it. Like Theravada and Mahayana among Buddhists,
Roman Catholic and Protestant among Christians, Brahmin and Sutra among
Hindus, Muslims are also divided with different kinds of sects and
groups with different views and opinions. Though, Islam does not allow
these divisions among Muslims. Due to misunderstanding of certain
things, Muslims are divided themselves.
However, the Minister’s talk has created a notion among the general
public that the Muslims only have such divisions and group fighting
among their religious sects. When it is connotatively said, together
with the erroneous views that the Muslims’ educational institutes are
teaching Jihad motivated syllabi for Muslim students to join ISIS and
Muslims are fighting among themselves creating disharmony to the nation,
these opinions of the Minister would certainly make an awful remarks
say Muslims are terrifying people and they are needless to this nation
as said some racist movements.
Is the General Secretary of Sri Lanka Thowheed Jama’ath, Abdur Razick remanded for insulting Buddha?
As the Minister has revealed the above misinformation which would be
able to cause a misunderstanding code among other religious people about
Sri Lankan Muslims, he also has said the arrest and remand of the
General Secretary of Thowheed Jama’ath was on the basis of the reason
that he had said “Buddha ate human flesh”. While talking about taking
action against the Buddhist – Muslim extremism, Hon. Minister joined and
knotted the General Secretary of Thowheed Jama’ath with extremism.
We would like to remark here that this expression of the Hon.
Minister’s is too being incorrectly portrayed by the people. We never
accept the descriptive wording of the Hon. Minister looping Thowheed
Jama’ath with extremism. This is because of the fact that Thowheed
Jama’ath never talked about using harsh extremist words like beating,
cutting, attacking or killing towards any majority or minority religious
individuals or groups of the country at any movement.
Whenever some members of specific racist organizations described
Islam, Al-Quran and Muslims wrongly, Thowheed Jama’ath always faced them
with democratically accepted ways and means of expressions so far. It
is true that the racist movements are up to this minute, expressing
heartburning phrases damaging our religious belief, threatening us that
they are preparing to kill us in the forthcoming days, and startling to
demolish our properties. But Thowheed Jama’ath would like to strongly
emphasise that we have never involved such extremist activities up to
the date in the country.
In the same way, the Minister has said that the reason for the arrest
and the remand of the General Secretary of Thowheed Jama’ath was due to
insulting Buddha. This view of the Hon. Minister is false because there
has been already a court case on trial for several months without
verdict whether the Secretary has insulted the Buddha or not. The court
has not yet judged that the Secretary has involved in insulting a
religion. Showing a pending court case without verdict and describing it
as the cause for the arrest and remand of the Secretary is untruthful
and sowing unnecessary viewpoints in the mind of the ordinary people.
We would like to bring this matter to the Hon. Minister’s notice that
court has not accounted for the cause of arrest and remand of General
Secretary as the reason that the Minister has expressed.
Justice should be erected against racism
Although the Parliamentary speech of the Hon. Minister of Justice
began as the views against those who reveal racism, it is vividly clear
that the all knotted things with terrorism in the middle are oriented
with Muslims and Islamic organizations.
At this critical point, it is true to say that the viewpoints of this
nature would absolutely produce huge vibrations in the general public
of the country where racist opinions are continuously disseminated in
social and other media. We and the all Muslims of this nation are
fearful whether the views stated in the Minister’s conversation would
pay the way for the racist who have been thirsty for the past few years
to make divisions among the multi-ethnic diversities through ethnic
riots, extend opportunities for foreign powers who are very much
ambitious to induce local turmoil that provides them profits, and give
provender for those who are wandering with power hunger politicizing
everything in the country to protect their seats in Parliament and come
into power from the back door.
We therefore earnestly request the Hon. Minister to publicize true
information and views without providing opportunities for such
turncoats.
Muslims are not third class citizen of this country. We are
aboriginal citizens of this nation. Our and our forefathers’ umbilical
cords were buried in this land. The contribution of Muslims to this
country in relation to the growth, development and co-existence are
equal in accordance with the percentage of the Muslim population and it
cannot be underestimated in any way. For the past three war-prevailed
decades, Muslims of this country suffered a lot and being chased away
from their native place as they severely opposed terrorism and
separatism. So far they wander here and there as refugees without being
resettled. Thowheed Jama’ath would like to further elucidate the fact on
behalf of the Muslims very clearly that Sri Lankan Muslims so far in
the history of the nation did not make any attempt to separate the
country. We have been always peace loving people of this mother Lanka.
We love this country very much as it is our flesh and blood.
M.F.M RASMIN MISc
Asst. Secretary
Thawheed Jama’ath (SLTJ
Asst. Secretary
Thawheed Jama’ath (SLTJ
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