Sri Lanka Blocks Facebook, WhatsApp as Communal Strife Intensifies

Colombo, Mar 7: Despite the imposition of emergency to control the unrest, communal strife in Sri Lanka intensified as hardline Buddhist nationalist groups perpetrated overnight attacks on mosques in central Kandy district. Authorities blamed instigation on social media for the post-midnight spree of attacks, which compelled the government to block Facebook, Whatsapp, Viber and other social media messaging applications until further orders.

The 10-day emergency was clamped in the island nation on Tuesday after two deaths were reported in Kandy district in clashes between the majority Sinhalese Buddhists and the sizeable Muslim community in the region.

Government spokesperson Dayasiri Jayasekara said the unprecedented step was taken to prevent the communal riots of Kandy to spread to other parts of Sri Lanka.

A Reuters report citing local sources, however, claimed that attacks against Muslim establishments and places of worship continued in Kandy despite the emergency being enforced.

Rights' group in Sri Lanka have blamed President Maithripala Sirisena of adopting a soft approach towards unruly Buddhist nationalist groups, including the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), which has been accused of organising the carnage.

"Still no sign of a strong statement against attacks on Muslims from President Maithripala Sirisena or Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe," said Alen Keenan, Sri Lanka Project Director of International Crisis Group. Keenan also questioned the silence of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The United Nations' Human Rights Council on Wednesday appealed the Sirisena regime to take "immediate measures" to prevent atrocities on ethnic and religious minorities in Sri Lanka.

"There should be no impunity, either for the incitement that led to the attacks, or the attacks themselves," UN rights chief Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein said.

The US State Department also sounded an alert for Colombo saying the clashes in Kandy, if left unchecked, could lead to nationwide ethnic clashes.

Meanwhile, a senior minister of Sirisena government, Sarath Amunugama said the situation will be brought under control. "The carnage is being organised by people from outside Kandy. We will not let their conspiracy succeed," he told reporters in Colombo.

Buddhist groups have blamed Rohingya asylum seekers for the unrest in Kandy, alleging their links to transnational terrorist networks. Muslim revivalist groups have also been accused of "forcefully converting" people to Islam.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 07, 2018 07:53 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).