{"id":90391,"date":"2019-06-14T15:13:41","date_gmt":"2019-06-14T22:13:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=90391"},"modified":"2019-06-14T15:24:42","modified_gmt":"2019-06-14T22:24:42","slug":"the-muslims-of-sri-lanka-part-2b","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2019\/06\/14\/the-muslims-of-sri-lanka-part-2b\/","title":{"rendered":"THE MUSLIMS OF SRI LANKA Part 2B"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kamalika Pieris<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

There is deep hostility between Wahhabi\nmovements and the traditional (Sufi) groups, reported Faslan and Vanniasinkam. They\nfight over who is the better Muslim and who are the real followers of Prophet\nMohamed. They each consider themselves as the only real Muslims, the rest are\nnon- Muslims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Families, including children were also trained\nto think on those lines. In\nKattankudy, for   instance, Wahhabis\npublicly ridiculed the practices of traditional groups and in their homes,\nfamilies gathered around the television to watch CDs of these public statements\nand laugh at the non-Muslim groups, reported Faslan and Vanniasinkam.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The Wahhabi were insulting towards the traditional\ngroups and their saints, said Faslan and Vanniasinkam. Wahhabi groups were openly critical of\ntraditional Muslim practices. Wahhabis object to Kanduri (celebrating feasts),\nKodiyetram (hoisting of the mosque flag) and Maulid celebrations (singing songs\nin praise of Prophet Mohamed). Wahhabi say these are not part of orthodox\nIslam, but borrowings from Hindu culture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Wahhabi (Thowheed) groups tried to disrupt\nMuslim worship. Thowheed adherents started coming into our\nmosques, said Azath Sally. They became a nuisance to us. They have a practice\nof rotating their fingers disturbing all other worshippers. The way traditional\nMuslims pray is different. Fights have broken out as a result of this, he said.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The sighting of the new moon for Ramazan  is an\nimportant matter for Muslims.  It was\nturned into a major cause of conflict between Muslim groups. Usually the ACJU\ndecides when the moon was sighted. The ACJU decision was opposed by the Wahhabi\n(Thawheed) groups, said Faslan and Vanniasinkam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This issue was given publicity in the\nnewspapers.  I recall reading that Muslim\nleaders had come to sight the new moon, could not see it and gone home, or some\nsuch thing. I also recall a request, in the papers, that Muslims should look\nout for the new moon and inform the Muslim leaders, or something like that. I\ncannot remember when this happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The hostility between Wahhabi and traditional\nMuslims has led to violent conflict. The two rival groups have clashed physically.<\/strong>A Sufi cleric was killed at Valachchenai\nin July 2009.  <\/strong> In\nsome instances, the conflict was instigated by the Thawheed Jamaat but\nperpetrated by traditional Sufi groups, said Faslan and Vanniasinkam. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wahhabi and\ntraditional Muslims have destroyed each other\u2019s mosques.<\/strong> The Wahhabis\ndestroyed a mosque at Ukuwela in Feb 2006 and a mosque in Thihariya in May\n2009. A Sufi shrine at Anuradhapura was\ndestroyed in 2013. There were also plans to destroy the Daftar Jailany shrine\nin Balangoda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The traditional\nMuslims hit back. There was a clash at Madampitiya between Wahhabi and Jamaate\nIslami in 2014 resulting in stones being thrown at a Thawheed centre in\nMadampitiya for two hours.  A Wahhabi\nmosque in Beruwala,\nMasjidur Rahman, was burned in 2008, leading to two deaths, 40\npeople injured, and 132 arrests. The traditional Muslims (Quadri Sufi)\ncomplained that the Wahhabi mosque had accused their Bukhari Thakkiya mosque of\nbeing disbelievers\u201d and concealers of the truth\u201d (qafirun)<\/em> continuously\nin the eight years since the Wahhabi mosque was inaugurated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kattankudy in\nBatticaloa district,  is home to a\nvariety of Muslim groups.  All Islamic\ngroups and movements are represented in Kattankudy. Wahhabi hostility,    violence and desire to kill was clearly\ndemonstrated in Kattankudy.  Kattankudy\nhas been a centre of continuing violence, and all agree that the violence was\ncaused by National Thawheed Jamat, (NTJ) led by Zaharan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Wahhabi specifically targeted two\nmovements, Thareekathul Mufliheen and the Rauf group. NTJ has been very confrontational in its\nattack of the Abdur Rauf group,<\/em>\ncriticizing their practices and teachings at public platforms, conducting\npublic debates and distributing slanderous DVDs, reported the media   NTJ\nare considered to be responsible for the violent evacuation of members of the\nAbdur Rauf group from Kattankudy in 2000 and 2006. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

All Island\nTharikathul Mufliheen, a Sufi sect founded by K. S. M. Abdulla<\/strong>,\n<\/strong>called (Rah) and also\nknown as Pahilvan from Maruthamunai. (Rah) and the members of his order were\nsubject to gun and grenade attacks, and other physical aggression, as well as\nthreats. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thareekathul\nMufliheen opened a Meditation Centre at Kattankudy in 1996. Wahhabis promptly\ntried to burn it down. In October, 2004,\n500 Wahhabis<\/a>, organized\nas Jihadis again set the Meditation Centre ablaze, destroying its library,\nalong with homes and businesses owned by Sufis. Financial loss to the injured\nparties was considerable, and one Sufi was shot and killed while another was\nwounded by gunfire, reported the media. Police arrested eight suspects, but\nreleased them later. No charges were framed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Meditation Centre and headquarters were\nrebuilt and a birthday celebration for the founder of the order was held on\nJuly 25, 2006, with 15,000 people provided free food. On or around this time, a group of Wahhabi indoctrinated\nyoungsters went   rampaging in public\nattacking members of the All Island Tharikathul Mufliheen, reported the media. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Rah) died on December 6, 2006. The Jihadis,\narmed with lethal weapons, rioted after the death of Abdullah (Rah), bringing\nlife in Kattankudy to a halt by a general work stoppage (hartal<\/em>).\nSchools, government and private offices, banks and businesses shut down and\nsome banks and shops were looted and burned, reported the media.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wahhabi preachers from the Thawheed network\nand the armed Jihad\u201d incited the local politicians and local clerics, (\nJamiathul Ulama Kattankudy,  Muslim\nFederation of Mosques, and  Urban Council\nof Kattankudy) to oppose (Rah\u2019s) burial according to Islamic rites, in the\nMeditation Centre, as he was a supposed apostate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another member of the Sufi order  died on December 1, 2006, was buried that\nday, and on December 2 was exhumed by Wahhabis on the same pretext and laid out\non the soil. According to the Wahhabis and their accomplices, apostates\u201d could\nnot be buried in Kattankudy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On December 13, 2006 Urban Council, Kattankudy\nordered the dismantling of the minaret at the Meditation Centre, as an\nunauthorized structure\u201d.<\/em> Police\nprevented commencement of the demolition, but Wahhabi fanatics interfered with\nthe officers. Three rioters were shot and killed. A police post and police\nvehicle were assaulted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On December 15, 2006, members of the Urban\nCouncil joined a Wahhabi mob that invaded the Meditation Centre and knocked\ndown the minaret, removing the body of Abdullah (Rah), either burning or\nreburying it in a location yet unknown. The houses of 117 Sufis were leveled by\nfire. Many were threatened and fled the district. Two were injured, and one\nlost an arm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sri\nLanka Supreme Court  gave an order in\n2008, that 200 members of Thareekathul Mufliheen be allowed to return to their\nhomes in Kattankudy and practice their beliefs in freedom. This was obstructed\nby armed Jihad members, reported the media. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were\nother NTJ attacks in Kattankudy. On December 17, 2006, over 100 houses of Sufi followers\nwere destroyed by fire and Wahhabis were blamed. In July 2009 there were clashes between\nSufis and Wahhabis and two people were killed and 40 injured. In 2017, several\npeople  were severely injured in a clash\nbetween Thawheed Jamat and the Sufis. The groups attacked each other with\nswords and knives on  a Friday during a\nlecture. Those attacked lodeged a complaint with the police. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 2017, the\nresidents of Kattankudy had had enough. A large number of Muslims took to the\nstreets in March 2017, to protest the recent clash while demanding that the\ngroups with the radical mindset leave and let the residents live in peace. Both\nold and young, including men and women holding placards demanded that \u2018Wahabi\nterrorism\u2019 stop,  reported the media. We want peace, we do not\nwant Wahabi terrorism,\u201d the demonstrators said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is evidence\nto show that Muslims had been concerned about these matters  for some time.In 2014 a group called the\n“Peace Loving Moderate Muslims in Sri Lanka” made a public protest on\nthe matter. They sent a letter dated 14.3.14 addressed to Secretary General of the\nUnited Nations, UN Human Rights Council and to the President of Sri Lanka. They\nalso released the text to the media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peace-Loving\nModerate Muslims\u201d  said “This\nmovement [NTJ] has fast become a cancer within the Muslim community in Sri\nLanka. Preaching and practicing religious intolerance, exerting pressure on\nother Islamic movements, making it compulsory to attend mosques, making it\ncompulsory to learn the Arabic language, making the implementation of Sharia\nlaw above the civil laws of Sri Lanka, forcing females to wear the burka and\nthe construction of mosques and madrasas in many parts of the country are some\nof these activities. This movement which started in the Eastern Province has\nnow spread to many different parts of Sri Lanka. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We fear that\nthese activities, if left unchecked by the authorities, would create a\nsituation in which the majority of Muslims in Sri Lanka, already under threat\nand harassment from this extremist minority, may have to face the wrath of\nother religions, It is tragic that the majority of Muslims who are essentially\npeace-loving are to pay for the actions of this minority,” the statement\nconcluded. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another\ngroup, the  Ex Muslims of Sri Lanka\u201d\n(sic) issued a statement in March 2017. \nSri Lankan Muslims are being indoctrinated with a fundamentalist,\nhateful and terrorist ideology by groups, organizations and individuals who are\nreceiving foreign funds.  They are doing\nso under the excuse of Islamic Missionary\u201d, said the Ex Muslims of Sri Lanka\n(EMSL) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

EMSL said\nthat one of the groups involved in violence is a pro ISIS \u2013 Islamic State\norganization, with members and supporters all around the Island. The\nactivities and preaching of such organizations have become a threat to the\nexistence of ex Muslims around Kattankudy area,\u201d. The government and the\ndefense authorities should pay strict attention and take serious actions\nagainst the activities of the foreign-funded Islamic groups, organizations,\nindividuals and other elements in Sri Lanka, which directly and indirectly preach\nand support terrorism, fundamentalism and hatred among Sri Lankan Muslims. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The incident that\ntook place between two Muslim factions on March 10 in Kattankudy indicates that\nextremist groups are ready to spread their terror continued EMSL. They are causing a crisis of faith for\nMuslims. Some of them have started teaching their doctrine of fundamentalism,\u201d\nan EMSL member said. They have become a\nthreat to the existence of ex-Muslims in Kattankudy. The general public including the peace\nloving Muslims should give their fullest support and cooperation to the\ngovernment and the defense authorities by providing all the information and\ndetails known to them regarding the above matter.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ex Muslims of\nSri Lanka\u201d called on the government and the defense authorities to take firm\nmeasures to free the nation completely from radical Islamic terrorist elements. They said they wanted the government to\nbring to an end all activities carried out by foreign-funded Islamic groups,\norganizations, individuals and related elements in Sri Lanka. (Continued)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kamalika Pieris There is deep hostility between Wahhabi movements and the traditional (Sufi) groups, reported Faslan and Vanniasinkam. They fight over who is the better Muslim and who are the real followers of Prophet Mohamed. They each consider themselves as the only real Muslims, the rest are non- Muslims. Families, including children were also trained […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-90391","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kamalika-pieris"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90391","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=90391"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90391\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=90391"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=90391"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=90391"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}