- Sri Lanka's government declares a nation-wide state of emergency
- The government reportedly took the step to quell the recurrent anti-Muslim riots in the country
- Sri Lanka, since the popular 2014 Aluthgama riots, has been battling with religious crises
Sri Lanka's government has imposed a nation-wide state of emergency to quell the unrest between religious communities which has left a Buddhist man killed and Muslim businesses set ablaze in the central city Kandy.
Aljazeera reports that police said on Monday, March 5, that there had been riots and arson attacks since the weekend in Kandy district.
In the past, religious and ethnic violence had turned deadly in Sri Lanka, where Muslims account for 10% of the 21 million population, and Buddhists Sinhalese make up nearly 75%. Another 13% of the population are Hindus.
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Some reportedly blame the nationalist Buddhist organisation Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) group for the ongoing violence.
In February 2018, five people were allegedly wounded and several shops and a mosque were damaged during a clash between Buddhist and Muslim groups.
In June 2014, an anti-Muslim campaign was launched following the deadly Aluthgama riots.
The Aluthgama riots in Sri Lanka were religious and ethnic riots in June 2014 in south-western Sri Lanka. Muslims and their property were attacked by Sinhalese Buddhists in the towns of Aluthgama, Beruwala and Dharga Town in Kalutara District. At least four people were killed and 80 injured.
Some Buddhist groups have also reportedly accused Muslim groups of forcing people to convert to Islam and vandalising Buddhist archaeological sites.
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President Maithripala Siresena had vowed to investigate anti-Muslim crimes after assuming power in 2015, but no significant progress has been reported.
NAIJ.com previously reported that police arrested a Nigerian online scammer in Sri Lanka.
The scammers that were nabbed by the police for fraud include twenty-five suspects from Uganda.
The Sri Lanka police in their reaction said the Criminal Investigation Division (CID) of the police came up with series of severe measures to restrict illegal people.
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Source: Naija.ng