Sri Lankan Muslims urge hardline Buddhists not to demolish mosque.
Sri Lankan Muslims have accused Buddhists in the country of trying to destroy the peace between the main ethnic communities.
The group made the statement three days after some Buddhists attempted to storm and fire-bomb a mosque, following the government’s announcement that the building would be demolished and relocated.
Despite Buddhists in the town ofDambulladefending their actions, the incident has angered many Muslims.
According to the Muslim Council of Sri Lanka, the 50-year-old building is lawfully registered.
They also told reporters that they were “deeply concerned” at the Buddhist’s actions and felt that they were undermining ethnic co-existence.
The incident encouraged the group to urge leaders of the country’s majority Buddhist faith to re-create good relationships.
Buddhist monks in Dambulla told reporters that the mosque is illegally built on ground that is sacred to their religion.
However a board member of the mosque denied this and said that it had been built before the area was made into a sacred zone 20 years ago.
Videos showed monks and other extreme protestors trying to storm the building.
The footage also showed a monk giving talks to the crowd, using racist terms and saying that the campaign against the mosque was a “victory for those who love the race, have Sinhalese blood and are Buddhists.”
72 religious buildings are also said to be demolished because they are illegal, including a Tamil Hindu temple.
A Dambulla monk told the BBC that the move was a way of safeguarding Buddhism and that there would be no Buddhist land left if intrusions continued.
Although President Mahinda Rajapaksa is overseas, Muslims politicians from his government are against the move to demolish the mosque.
