OIC pledges its support for communal harmony in Sri Lanka

OIC Secretary General Dr Yusuf Al-Othaimeen and Sri Lankan Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Azmi Thassim are seen at OIC Headquarters in Jeddah on Sunday (1 April).

Riyadh: The Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) has pledged its support to Sri Lanka, to stabilise communal harmony in the island.

This was revealed during a meeting in Jeddah on Sunday (1 April), between OIC Secretary General Dr. Yusuf Al-Othaimeen and Sri Lankan Ambassador Azmi Thassim, at the Organisation’s headquarters.

Speaking to the Daily FT, Ambassador Thassim said the meeting was arranged on a directive from the Foreign Ministry in Colombo, which had received a letter from the OIC expressing immense concerns over the recent violence unleashed against Muslims in Kandy and Amparai.

The Ambassador explained that things were brought under control by swift action by the Government, such as enforcing curfew, and that compensation for damages had been promised by the State.

During the three-day violent period, mosques, Muslim shops, and Muslim houses were vandalised by racists who came in large groups to attack Muslim properties and persons.

Dr. Al-Othaimeen stated that it is not the OIC’s business to interfere in the affairs of a country. However, he also added that as a parent body for 57 Muslim countries, it is concerned with the welfare of the Muslims who are a minority in non-Muslim countries.

“We like to promote peaceful co-existence with other communities in a country for a peaceful living,” Dr. Al-Othaimeen said.

He expressed the OIC’s readiness to cooperate with Sri Lanka to conduct inter-faith dialogue among the people, which would gradually promote communal harmony in the Island. Dr. Al-Othaimeen agreed to visit Sri Lanka on an invitation extended by the Ambassador.

The island is a popular destination for Arab tourists, who were attracted to the scenic beauty of the country and the hospitality shown by its people. In 2017, there were 38,000 Saudi tourists to Sri Lanka, and these numbers were poised to increase, if it were not for the recent violence against Muslims.