To the Honorable Ambassador Rodney Perera;
Shia Rights Watch expresses gratitude for the Sri Lankan Colombo Magistrate courts for their protection of Shia Muharram ceremonies by restraining the nationalist groups, ‘Sinhala Jathika Balamuluwa’ and ‘Ravana Balaya,’ upon awareness of their planned disruption of Shia practices in Bambalapitiya.
Colombo, Sri Lanka is home to over 25,000 Shia Muslims who are active in citizenship and patriotism. Violence on the basis of religious belief in 2019 startled many and instilled fear in various religious minorities, not only in Sri Lanka, but also the region. The action taken by the courts, however, was a pioneering step in signaling coexistence in the nation of Sri Lanka.
To the Shia community, the protection of the Magistrate signaled that Sri Lanka prioritizes the prevention of human rights violations, supports diversity and coexistence of minorities and that the courts will not stand in support of any act of injustice and violence.
Shia Rights Watch thanks the Sri Lankan authorities for their active prevention of human rights violations against religious minorities in the nation. This action of Sri Lanka now serves as an example of violence prevention for all nations in the international community.
In hopes of international peace,
Shia Rights Watch
