In recent times, Sri Lanka has seen a rise in ethnic tensions fuelled by the Bodu Bala Sena ( BBS). For some months, the BBS has been inciting hatred against religious minorities; resulting in intermittent attacks on churches, mosques and the occasional attack on businesses owned by Muslims . BBS monks have also been caught on video threatening violence against their moderate colleagues who advocate tolerance.

However, in the last few days, the situation appears to have escalated dramatically. The violence began after a speech by BBS Galagoda Atthe Gnanasara at a BBS rally in Aluthgama, which came three days after a smaller clash resulting from an accident between a Muslim youth’s motorbike and a bhuddist monk’s car.

Muslim homes and mosques have been stoned. A curfew has been imposed in the coastal town Beruwala, where a muslim minister in the current government was also blockaded in at the Nallemiyah Arabic College in Beruwala with an armed mob standing outside to attack those within, reports just coming in from the ground said.” Eyewitness accounts tell of Muslims being pulled off local buses and being beaten.

Sadly, there are also reports of three Muslims being shot to death near Walipitiya Mosque by the violent mobs.

The violence has now spread to Dehiwala, in the capital Colombo, where the Harcourts Pharmacy has been attacked. The vast majority of the Bhuddist population in Sri Lanka are against the actions of BBS. But, the inaction of the government has led to blood shed in the country, again.  

We call upon the Sri Lankan government to take immediate action to ban the BBS and bring the perpetrators of this violence to justice. Sri Lanka has just emerged from a 35 year ethnic war, and has been enjoying peace in recent times. We do not want Sri Lanka to be dragged into another ethnic conflict resulting in the deaths of innocent people, and another generation growing up with a backdrop of war.

https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/first-death-is-reported-in-sri-lanka-riots/​

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-27860156​

https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/riots-expand-minister-held-hostage/​

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2014/06/sri-lanka-shaken-religious-violence-201461518571482939.html

Addendum:

Since this petition was uploaded on 16 June, there have been several significant developments.  There has been  another death, with a Tamil security guard working at a Muslim farm near Aluthgama, being killed by Sinhalese mobs.  The injured from the attacks are now estimated at 80.

An anti muslim rally was also planned for Mawanella, but did not go ahead after a court order was obtained by the local police to stop the rally.

It has now emerged that muslim businesses were in actual fact burnt in the riots (see the link below for the pictures). Residents in Aluthgama & Dharga town are complaining of a food shortage due to the shops having been burnt down.

Equally disturbing,  a moderate Buddhist monk, Wataraka Vijitha Thero, who is highly critical of BBS, has been found beaten and unconscious on 19 June.  He was found undressed and with numerous cuts on his body in the district of Panadura, according to the BBC.