National programme to encourage ethnic harmony launched
View(s):Sri Lanka’s National Programme for Ethnic Harmony, a group working towards fostering harmony between ethnic groups, recently launched a programme on Sinhala –Muslim harmony.
The event was held in Colombo under the patronage of the President/National Organiser of the programme, Ven. Prof Kumburupitiye Vajira Thero and the President of Muslim Affairs, Dr. Abdul Cader Mashoor Moulana. According to a media release by the organisers, despite the end of the separatist war and as Sri Lanka is again recognized by the international community, economically and socially “hideous local and foreign movements with sinister motives are still trying … arouse communal differences”. It said that while an unstable situation between Sinhala and Muslim communities which cropped up in January this year has ended, some selfish quarters and even institutions are still trying to provide unnecessary publicity to that incident and create differences between Sinhala and Muslim communities for their own benefits. The organiser said the new ‘Sinhala –Muslim harmony programme’ will act against the people who spread false propaganda and work towards nurturing harmony between the majority of Sinhala Buddhist community and the Muslim community.