Sri Lanka Stands United

• The Muslim community should disown terrorism publicly and conduct a two to  three-hour vigil for the people who have died

• We need to be extremely watchful of those waiting in the wings to exploit the tense situations that the country is going through

• Nothing has been done to insult Islam by the Christian community though 359 persons have died and though it has been proved that Islamic extremists were responsible

In the aftermath of multiple bomb attacks on Easter Sunday for which the Islamic State claimed responsibility, Daily Mirror, spoke to several parties on strengthening the harmony among the different ethnic and religious groups.   

26 April 2019

The explosions on Sunday have claimed 359 lives so far and injured many more leaving a country mourning, devastated and in fear of further explosions.   

The people the Daily Mirror, spoke to said that the recent string of massive violence should not be reflective of the Muslim community as it was perpetrated by a small group of fanatics. They spoke of ways of strengthening harmony amongst the communities and praised the forbearance and tolerance of the Christian community.   

“We have asked mosques to collect funds to rebuild churches and assist those affected.”  

N.M. Ameen - Muslim Council of Sri Lanka 

President of the Muslim Council of Sri Lanka, N.M.Ameen said that the Muslim community vehemently condemns the explosions. “Islam does not endorse violence. We have asked mosques to collect funds to rebuild churches and assist those affected. We will have a special prayer during Friday jummah prayers for the dead and others who were affected. 

This is very unfortunate. We have not had a quarrel with Christians and we have lived closely with the Sinhalese, Tamil and Christians. We must rebuild these relationships. Each person should work towards it. We ask politicians to come together,” he said.   

 “These activities are carried out by a small group of people. They are only Muslims by name. We informed the defence secretary before about the National Thawhid Jamaath organization. But this was not taken up by the authorities.We express our deepest sympathy to our Christian brothers,” he added.

“The perpetrators should be punished.”   

Dr. D.M. Farook - President of All Ceylon Union of Muslim Youth League Front  

 President of the All Ceylon Union of Muslim Youth League Front, Dr.D.M.Farook, said that Islam does not allow violence. “The perpetrators should be punished. Otherwise, it will go on,” he said.

"The well- organized, unbelievably synchronized suicidal terrorist assaults targeting innocent people at prayers, stand condemned as the most cowardly acts of despicable terror"

“All Extremist Islamist groups should be banned right away.”

Shreen Abdul Saroor  - Women’s Action Network     

Co-founder of Women’s Action Network, Shreen Abdul Saroor said that all extremist Islamist groups should be banned right away. “Islam does not teach extremism. If anyone teaches Islam in an extreme manner which disconnects us from the other communities, that should be banned. We live in a multi-ethnic community. Before calling others extremists, we need to look at our own selves from what we were twenty years ago,” she said.   
Ms. Saroor who was in Negombo at the time she was speaking to the  said that Muslims in Negombo were unable to pay respect at the funerals in their neighbourhood because of a fear of retaliation. “But reaching out to other communities is important. Being inside is not going to help the Muslim community. I know there is a lot of fear mongering but everyone’s life is valuable and lots of valuable lives have been lost.

The Muslim community should disown terrorism publicly and conduct a two to  three-hour vigil for the people who have died. Everybody is at home comfortably saying that this is not Islamic and this is not our people. We have to publicly call them terrorists. We have to tell people that there is no place for terrorism in Islam. We should close our shops for two to three weeks and mourn for the dead,” she said.   

“Muslims of Sri Lanka have nothing to do with those terrorists.”

M. M. Zuhair- PC     

In a statement, President’s Counsel M.M.Zuhair said: “The well- organized, unbelievably synchronized suicidal terrorist assaults targeting innocent people at prayers, stand condemned as the most cowardly acts of despicable terror. 

That they dared to carry through the pre-planned attacks despite knowing that their plans had leaked with substantial accuracy, ten days earlier clearly establishes one fact. They had made-up their sick minds to kill themselves in their lunatic mission to murder the innocents.”  He also said that suicide is prohibited in Islam, no matter the cause. “They have earned a permanent place in hell according to Islam,” he added. 

“By and large the Muslims of Sri Lanka had successfully harmonized themselves with all other ethnic and religious communities over the centuries. What then led a few of its youths to launch on Easter Sunday deadly suicide missions to kill innocent tourists and people at prayers?... The state investigators must diligently investigate to get at the truth and the genuine extent to which this deadly cancer may have spread,” he said adding that people must show the maximum cooperation without any hesitation to detect the remaining violence-prone extremists. 

"Relationships among communities can be protected by the security forces and the government stating very clearly at all times that no community should be targeted and that this was done by a small group of fanatics and extremists"

“Investigators will no doubt ensure that vested interests, both internal and external are not allowed to mislead them from apprehending innocent friends and family members of violent extremists. Muslims must devise plans to rehabilitate persons subject to extremism and persons who misinterpret the religion for collateral purposes,” he said.   

“Muslims appear to live in fear of a backlash. They could also face harassments at the hands of mischief makers. Every such incident should be reported to the Police. They must also face the situation with patience and grace.   
These suicide bombers have also broken through the hearts and minds of millions of Muslims in Sri Lanka and elsewhere. The time has come for us all to be vigilant of those who mislead us. We need to be extremely watchful of those waiting in the wings to exploit the tense situations that the country is going through. We have a clear message to the country. Muslims of Sri Lanka have nothing to do with those terrorists with Muslim names!” he said.   

“Need to keep reaffirming the values of dignity, equality, tolerance and freedom.”

Ermiza Tegal - MPLRAG   

Attorney-at-Law Ermiza Tegal of the Muslim Personal Law Reforms Action Group (MPLRAG) said: “It is a time for grieving and picking up the pieces. It is time to focus on caring and coping. While it is the duty of the authorities to take swift action against these horrific crimes, it falls on the shoulders of all the peace-loving communities of Sri Lanka to unite in caring, unite against hate and to set an example of responding with love as many already have. 

"By and large the Muslims of Sri Lanka had successfully harmonized themselves with all other ethnic and religious communities over the centuries. What then led a few of its youths to launch on Easter Sunday deadly suicide missions to kill innocent tourists and people at prayers?... The state investigators must diligently investigate to get at the truth and the genuine extent to which this deadly cancer may have spread"

We, including our leaders, need to keep reaffirming the values of dignity, equality, tolerance and freedom as it is those very values that have been attacked and rendered fragile.”   

Meanwhile, in a statement, MPLRAG said that Sri Lanka must emerge stronger as a more compassionate and just nation to defeat the efforts of terrorists. “The terror inflicted on Sri Lankans was meant to cause suffering, instil fear and panic, and tear our communities apart. We cannot give in to this. 

We understand that anger is a normal reaction to pain and suffering. We must resist all efforts meant to cause distrust, disharmony, and division. We must not allow any more people to suffer any form of injustice or indignity,” the statement read.   

The statement further added that no one religious, ethnic, or linguistic group can or should be held responsible for the actions of a few individuals whose ideologies are too extreme to comprehend.   

“Politicians should not rouse racism so as to take political advantage to increase their voter base.”

Ven. Dambara Amila Thera - Nalanda University College   

Ven. Dambara Amila Thera of the Nalanda University College praised the forbearance of the people and said: “Few days has passed since the explosions. But no Muslim person, no mosque has been attacked. 
Nothing has been done to insult Islam by the Christian community though 359 persons have died and though it has been proved that Islamic extremists were responsible,” he said expressing his gratitude towards the forbearance people have shown.

 
He added that politicians should not rouse racism so as to take political advantage to increase their voter base. “In any case, people are intelligent now and they understand what caused the series of unfortunate incidents,” he said.   

"The terror inflicted on Sri Lankans was meant to cause suffering, instil fear and panic, and tear our communities apart. We cannot give in to this"

“Not reflective of the position of anyone in the community.”  

Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu - Centre for Policy Alternatives 

Executive Director of the Centre for Policy Alternatives, Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu said: “The investigations should be conducted swiftly without any fear or favour. The lapses in the security establishment are absolutely appalling.”   

“The relationships among communities can be protected by the security forces and the government stating very clearly at all times that no community should be targeted and that this was done by a small group of fanatics and extremists, and that is not reflective of the position of anyone in the community,” he said.