Sri Lankas tilt towards religious extremism

April 11, 2014 On Wednesday ( !, "alagoda At#t#e "nanasara $#era, t#e "eneral Se%retary o& t#e #ard'line (udd#ist group, (odu (ala Sena (((S!, stormed a media %on&eren%e t#at was )eing addressed )y a group o& *uslim *aula+is and (udd#ist %lergy,

-lanked )y two do.en young monks, t#e #ard'line monk &or%ed t#e organi.ers to suspend t#e e+ent/ t#e *aula+is &led t#e s%ene w#ile t#e (udd#ist monks were #umiliated and &or%ed to )eg &orgi+eness &or siding wit# 0Le))es,0 a pe1orati+e term &or t#e *uslims, A monk, Watareka 2i1it#a $#era was &or%ed to apologi.e to t#e entire nation and t#e *a#a Sang#a &or 0letting down t#e *a#a Sanga )e&ore t#e *uslims and )etraying (udd#ism,0 (elow is an 3nglis# translation o& w#at "nanasara $#era said during t#e #ulla)aloo, 4e was )erating t#e monks w#o #ad )een #olding t#e media %on&eren%e,

56on0t you &eel as#amed to %ome #ere in a sa&&ron ro)e7 "et out, 8 was looking &or you, Watareka 2i1it#a $#era, Aren0t you as#amed to was# dirty linen o& mos9ues7 We will remo+e your ro)e and dress you in a (urka, $#is man is a dog, :ot wort#y o& t#e ro)e, ;ou de&amed t#e entire *a#a Sang#a, ;ou s#amed t#e nation )y going a&ter mos9ues, We s#ould not let )astards like you to exist, W#en did we dis#onour our ro)e7 5;ou %all us &or a de)ate, Let0s de)ate now, $#e media is also #ere, We are representing an entire nation, (ut, we #a+e to wait, w#ile t#e *uslims are destroying t#e 1ungles in Wilpattu, :ot a single Sin#alese %an take &irewood &rom Wilpattu, *uslims go and )uild #ouses and li+e t#ere, ;ou are seated at t#e same ta)le, dressed in a sa&&ron ro)e wit# t#ose *uslims,5

Anti'Semiti% #ate spee%# $#ose remarks are anti'Semiti% and amount to #ate spee%#, (ut, t#e ((S monk got away s%ot &ree, Sri Lanka #as a pro)lem wit# t#e nas%ent Sin#ala (udd#ist extremism, W#at t#e %ountry is now witnessing is t#e emergen%e o& ra)id (udd#ist extremism akin to (urma, w#ere (udd#ist mo)s #a+e killed #undreds o& *uslims in <ak#ine State, leading to a mass exodus o& *uslims, unseen e+en during t#e repressi+e not so distant days under t#e military =unta, "nanasara $#era %ould well )e t#e lo%al parallel o& (urmese ra))le'rouser, As#in Wirat#u, t#e extremist monk w#o #as instigated lo%al (udd#ists to take on *uslims, leading to a )itter ra%ial %on&lagration,

<eligious extremism is not ex%lusi+e to Wa#a))ism or S#i+ Sena, 8slam, gi+en t#e allure o& Sala&ism and t#e dominant role o& >oliti%al 8slam in t#e *uslim so%ieties, %ould well )e sus%epti)le to illi)eral and extremist intrusion, $#e emergen%e o& >oliti%al 8slam in t#e post Ara) Spring so%ieties is a %ase in point, (ut, t#ose +ery weaknesses are omnipresent in ot#er religions in +arying degrees, (udd#ists %an well )e%ome extremists, Long standing so%ial and %ultural +alues, go+ernan%e stru%ture and ot#er independent institutions %ould #elp dilute t#e per+asi+e in&luen%e o& religious extremism, $#at is w#y >akistan and Saudi Ara)ia, w#ere t#e illi)eral regimes #a+e purposely nurtured religious extremism, are among t#e ma1or )reeding grounds o& 8slami% extremism w#ereas 8ndonesia, world0s largest 8slami% %ountry, is a %osmopolitan moderate 8slami% State, Sri Lanka0s domineering popular narrati+e is anti'West, anti'minority and Sin#ala (udd#ist nationalist, $#e (odu (ala Sena &its t#e )ill and is %o+ertly and o+ertly )eing )a%ked )y t#e in%um)ent regime, w#i%# uses (udd#ist nationalism in order to legitimi.e t#e regime, $#is parti%ular popular narrati+e itsel& is s#aped )y t#e in%um)ent regime, w#i%# relies on %rude populism to 1usti&y t#e erosion o& )asi% li)eral demo%rati% %redentials o& t#e institutions o& t#e Sri Lankan State, $#e manipulation o& a largely rural and %onser+ati+e population #as )een made easier )y t#e a)sen%e o& independent national institutions, erosion o& 1udi%ial independen%e and t#e suppression o& media &reedom,

<egressi+e so%iety Sri Lankan so%iety today is more regressi+e, insular and illi)eral t#an it #ad )een 10 years )e&ore, Su%# a polity is +ulnera)le to manipulation )y its own go+ernment and marauding religious and et#no nationalist elements, Sri Lanka #as sadly rea%#ed t#at dangerous point, On%e t#e w#eels o& et#no'religious extremism are set in motion, t#ey take a li&e o& t#eir own, $#e State apparatus %ould )e%ome su)ordinate to t#e apparatus o& et#no'religious extremism, 6uring t#e re%ently %on%luded Western >ro+in%ial ?oun%il ele%tion, t#e ruling @>-A itsel& &ielded a %andidate, a &ormer singer *adu *adawa Ara+inda, w#o asked t#at only t#e Sin#ala people +ote &or #im, $wenty &i+e t#ousand +oted &or #im, t#oug# #e %ould not o)tain su&&i%ient +otes to enter t#e >ro+in%ial ?oun%il,

8n our saner, less insular days in t#e past, su%# a )latantly ra%ist %all would #a+e s#o%ked us, $#e rising Sin#ala (udd#ist extremism is in%reasingly %#allenging t#e multi'%ultural, multi' et#ni% nature o& t#e Sri Lankan State, 3t#ni% and religious minorities, w#o #a+e )een %oer%ed into su)mission )y t#e State and its in%reasingly ma1oritarian poli%ies, are )e%oming despondent, $#e go+ernment itsel& #as %ome down #ard against et#ni% minority parties su%# as t#e SL*? &or speaking on )e#al& o& t#e *uslims,

$#e anti%s o& t#e ((S on Wednesday and t#e &a%t t#at t#ose marauding monks got away s%ot &ree are proo& o& extensi+e damage sustained )y our national institutions and ensuing de&ormity o& our long' standing so%ial and %ultural +alues in re%ent times, $#e go+ernment s#ould not turn a )lind eye to t#e religious extremism at its midst, Sri Lanka does not need a (udd#ist $ali)an,