Sri Lanka's main Tamil party - Tamil National Alliance (TNA) - today stood-up in defence of the country's Muslims in the Parliament, saying violence against the minority community should stop now.
"I demand that the violence against the Muslim people cease now. I demand an end to the repulsive hate speech that we hear every day. I demand an end to the collusion of the state in this campaign of hate," said Rajavayothi Sampanthan, the leader of TNA in his speech.
In the recent weeks, the Buddhist nationalist Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) or the Buddhist Force unleashed an anti-Muslim campaign.
Condemning what he termed a "bitter and spiteful campaign" against the Muslim community, Sampanthan said, "Today the Muslim people are fearful; anxious and hurt by the invective surrounding them."
The TNA leader said as fellow minorities, the Tamil people feel the pain, the insecurity, the fear and the anxiety of our Muslim brothers and sisters.
"As victims of the worst atrocities, we the Tamils have demanded that the country and the world heed our call for accountability, justice and the guarantee of non-recurrence," Sampanthan said.
The Muslims constitute 9 per cent of the nation's 20 million population just behind Tamils at 12 per cent.
