Ampara to be separated – SLMC

SLMC had suggested to government that they establish a separate Muslim administration in the Ampara District, as the majority in that district are Muslims. Commenting, the JHU said that carrying out such a request would separate the Muslims from the rest of the people in the country, being a separatist and extremist move.
Meanwhile, the National Sangha Council’s Rajawatte Wappa Thera, who addressed a meeting in Colombo  said, “This is a small country and it cannot be divided on the basis of ethnicity or religion, according to the whims and fancies of certain parties. We cannot tear the country to pieces so that one person can secure his power, it is the greatest harm one can do to the country.” Thero therefore, asked the defence establishment and the government to pay special attention to such demands and stop the likelihood of the country being fragmented. “We ask that they save the country from such a disaster,” the Thera said

The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) demand for a Muslim-majority administrative unit in the Eastern Province was very much similar to the LTTE’s demand for a separate state in the Northern and Eastern Provinces of Sri Lanka, Parliament was told yesterday.

The SLMC is a constituent of the SLFP-led UPFA though it contested the last parliamentary polls on the UNP ticket.

“This is a dangerous trend in politics. All of us must oppose the SLMC’s move. The government has the wherewithal to act against such projects,” UNP Colombo District MP Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe said.

The MP opening the debate on the expenditure heads of the Ministry of Defence Urban Development during the committee stage of Budget 2015, said the majority of Sinhala politicians represented the interest of all Sri Lankans, whereas some smaller political parties pursued agendas inimical to the national interest.

MP Rajapakshe pointed out that SLMC’s call for a separate administrative unit was equal to the separatist demands by Tamil leaders like Amirthalingam and Chelvanayagam. “Their actions paved the way for Tamil youth taking up arms against the government of the day. Referring to turmoil caused by the LTTE and other terrorist groups, the UNPer alleged that the SLMC was trying to do the same. The MP regretted Muslim leaders making an attempt to instigate their youth to campaign for a separate administrative unit for the Eastern Province.

“What would have happened if the Sinhalese, too, demand separate administrative districts for them on the basis the Muslims want Ampara to be declared exclusively their own? The separatist project launched by the SLMC should be strongly opposed by other political parties, he said.

Responding to concerns voiced by MP Rajapakshe, Prime Minister D. M. Jayaratne said he endorsed the views expressed by the Opposition MP. The PM thanked the UNPer for highlighting the issue. The government, too, would not approve of moves to divide the country on ethnic lines, he said.

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