Secretary General of Organization of Islamic Cooperation to visit Sri Lanka
Tuesday, 30 September 2014 01:34
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The Head of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will visit Sri Lanka on an invitation from President Mahinda Rajapaksa, according to a senior official from the Sri Lankan Embassy in Saudi Arabia.
The Secretary General of the OIC Iyad Madani is due to visit Sri Lanka shortly, Arab News reported.
A Sri Lankan official said an advance team will go to Colombo shortly to make preparatory arrangements for Madani’s visit.
President Rajapaksa invited Madani to visit Sri Lanka when they met on the sidelines of the 69th United Nations General Assembly in New York on Thursday (25).
Sri Lanka has applied for observer status in the 57 -member organisation.
Sri Lankan Ambassador Mohamed Hussein Mohamed met Madani in Jeddah to discuss the program for the Secretary General’s visit to Colombo.
The four-member delegation from the OIC is expected to chalk out the program in coordination with the Ministry of External Affairs in Colombo. During his visit, in addition to meeting the President, Madani is expected to meet with religious organisations in the country to get firsthand knowledge of the current position of the minorities in the island. During his meeting with Madani in New York, the President assured the OIC Secretary General that his Government would take immediate action to deal with any incidents against the Muslim community.
