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Sri Lanka raises concerns over attempts to spread racial hatred

Xinhua, November 16, 2016 Adjust font size:

Sri Lanka's cabinet has noted attempts being made to spread racial hatred in the country once again, a minister said on Wednesday.

Media Minister Gayantha Karunathilaka said that some recent incidents had been brought to the notice of President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Karunathilaka said that those incidents will be dealt with under the law.

Concerns had been raised this week over a spate of events with ominous portents for ethnic and religious harmony and reconciliation in Sri Lanka.

These include the increasing use of hate speech against minorities by protest groups, and widespread anti-minority hate speech in social media.

The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA), a local Think Tank, had said that there appears to be an element of orchestration, of deeper political agendas aimed at reversing the country's current path towards peace, reconciliation, and reform.

CPA had noted that the president and the prime minister have an obligation to provide strong and principled leadership against these invidious forces, and ensure that police and civil servants are given the confidence to enforce the law in the face of intimidation and threats of violence. Endit