Buddhists Are Making Life Hell for Sri Lanka's Muslims

 

Muslims are under attack in Sri Lanka. Recent reports indicate that gangs of Buddhists have been roaming the streets, administering bloody mob beatings, and attacking places where Muslims work and worship. Raw pork has been thrown into mosques, the Halal logo has been banned, and the prominent Muslim government critic Azad Sally has been arrested. One dramatic incident ended with government commandos being deployed to maintain law and order after a gang of Buddhists injured four people at a mosque in Colombo, Sri Lanka's largest city, forcing it to close and a curfew to be put in place.

Moulavi Fazil Farooq, from the Islamic political group All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama, told me that Muslims’ “freedom of religion and freedom of speech” are under threat in Sri Lanka. He also sent me in the direction of one of the Buddhist groups that have been accused of carrying out the attacks: Bodu Bala Sena, which roughly translates as “Buddhist Power Force.” Their stated aim is to "protect" Buddhist culture in Sri Lanka, as it's apparently under threat from Muslim and Christian groups. (For context, 70 percent of Sri Lanka's population is Buddhist—less than 10 percent is Muslim, fewer still are Christian.)

 

Muslims are scared because they think they might be the next target of the Buddhists. They are all worried. They all feel that this might suddenly get out of control, which it could.