Police in Sri Lanka today arrested two people accused of publicly inciting racial hatred, including one from the majority Sinhalese community.
The Colombo Fort Police said they arrested a man named Dan Priyasad who had called himself the "Saviour of the Sinhalese" and had publicly threatened to bomb Muslims in Sri Lanka.
Similarly, secretary of the Sri Lanka Thawheed Jamath, Abdul Razik was arrested in the capital on charges of speaking against other religions in an offensive manner during a protest campaign held earlier this week.
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The Thawheed Jamath protested against moves to amend the Muslim Marriage Act as a requirement to regain trade concessions from the European Union.
Priyasad was allegedly responding to comments by Razik. Both men have been remanded to custody.
Concerns were raised by civil society on the recent trend of racial hate speeches.
Yesterday in the eastern district of Batticaloa, Tamils protested and called for the arrest of a local Buddhist monk for publicly threatening a Tamil state official with death.
"We are extremely concerned at the appearance of signs that, yet again, legal reforms aimed at improving our democracy and governance are being undermined by the forces of chauvinism and intolerance," Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA), a leading civil society organisation said in a statement.
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