Cabinet spolemannet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne condemned the attack on Rohingya refugees
Posted on September 27th, 2017
The Sri Lankan government Wednesday slammed a group of radical Buddhist monks who attacked Rohingya refugees on the island as “animals”, pledging action against police who failed to protect them.
Rajitha Senaratne, a cabinet spokesman, said the government condemned Tuesday’s storming of a UN safe house where 31 Rohingya refugees, including 16 children and seven women, had been given shelter.
Cabinet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne condemned the attack on Rohingya refugees (AFP Photo/ISHARA S. KODIKARA)
“As a Buddhist I am ashamed at what happened,” Senaratne told reporters.
“Mothers carrying very young children were forced out of their safe house which was attacked by a mob led by a handful of monks,” he said.
The mob broke down the gates of the multi-storied building near the capital Colombo, smashing windows and furniture as frightened refugees huddled together upstairs.
There were no reports of casualties among the refugees, who were later taken to another location, but two police officers were wounded and admitted to hospital.
Senaratne said police had been ordered to take disciplinary action against officers found to have failed to control the mob.
“This is not what the Buddha taught. We have to show compassion to these refugees. These monks who carried out the attacks are actually not monks, but animals,” he said.
Sri Lanka’s extremist Buddhist monks have close links with their ultra-nationalist counterparts in Myanmar. Both have been accused of orchestrating violence against minority Muslims in the two countries.
One of the monks who stormed the building posted a video on Facebook filmed by his radical group Sinhale Jathika Balamuluwa (Sinhalese National Force) as he urged others to join him and smash the premises.
“These are Rohingya terrorists who killed Buddhist monks in Myanmar,” the monk said in his live commentary, pointing to Rohingya mothers with small children in their arms.
The 31 Rohingya refugees were rescued by the Sri Lankan navy five months ago after they were found drifting in a boat off the island’s northern coast
They had been living in India for several years before leaving a refugee camp in Tamil Nadu state.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees expressed alarm over Tuesday’s attack and urged Sri Lankans to show empathy for civilians fleeing persecution and violence.
Almost half a million Rohingya Muslims have fled Myanmar for Bangladesh since August 25.
They have been the target of decades of state-backed persecution and discrimination in the mainly Buddhist country, where many view them as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh
September 27th, 2017 at 1:51 pm
Looks like Cabinet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne also in the Rohingya refugee smuggling racket getting Rohingya refugees from India to Sri Lankan and then transfer them to Western Countries through UNHCR.
September 27th, 2017 at 3:24 pm
R.S. is the one who sold heads (Brains) of the youths murdered during 88-89 as raw material to Dupont an American Chemical / Bio Chemical manufacturer, i.e. 500.00 USD each.
No doubt he has involvement of Rohingya refugees deal!
September 27th, 2017 at 3:44 pm
“One of the monks who stormed the building posted a video on Facebook filmed by his radical group Sinhale Jathika Balamuluwa (Sinhalese National Force) as he urged others to join him and smash the premises.”
If this is true, this guy cannot be a buddhist monk. I agree it is a disgrace. This guy should be caught and checked to his credentials. Under no circumstances a Buddhist monk should instigate violence.
September 27th, 2017 at 10:11 pm
But the truth is NO ONE HAS ATTACKED THE REFUGEES but unlike ANY OTHER COUNTRY in the world, govenement has secretly hidden them in the community, even given the Arabic Schools to attend.
Cabinet Spokeswoman is mad to call this an attack.
I beleive thers are thousands of muslims ( may not even be Rohngyas ) settled everywhere in the ocuntry, since 2010. I myself seen how the foriegn muslims even work in muslim eatring places.
This will never stop until we have a real Sinhalese in the governement.
September 28th, 2017 at 5:51 am
ROHINGYA SENARATNA.
September 28th, 2017 at 3:04 pm
MAALU KATAA
September 29th, 2017 at 9:46 am
Where ever there is bigotry, racism and ethnic cleansing should be condemned and the perpetrators should be prosecuted.Here the victims are the Rohingyas,they may be Muslims but they are humans and they have the right to life and security. Burma should never be allowed to get away with this crime.
We in SL is a small country and we must respect all the set international conventions that are there to protect us. Protect us from any nasty ambitions of our powerful neighbour. One day we may seek this protection….