The Plight of Colombo Muslims.........!!!

The Plight of Colombo Muslims and the
national political parties in Sri Lanka

M. I. M. Mohideen


Soon after defeating LTTE terrorism in May 2009, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said that there are no minority or majority communities in Sri Lanka today. There are only patriots and traitors, he explained. Muslim Ministers and political leaders supporting his UPFA Government have also said that there is no need for communal political parties and wanted the Muslims to join the National political parties.

Under these circumstances, it has become very pertinent to have a closer look at the plight of the Muslims particularly in Colombo for being patriots and loyal members of the National political parties in Sri Lanka.

We, Muslims are proud of the fact that we are citizens of Sri Lanka, our motherland, where our racial ancestors, the Arabs originated the Sri Lanka Muslim race, more than 2,500 years ago. As people professing the religion of Islam, we have been here for more than 1,430 years.

Muslims have always been loyal to the country and were in the forefront of the struggle - resisting foreign invaders, winning back the lost freedom and consolidating the freedom won. Muslims have fought together with the Sinhalese when the Portuguese invaded Sri Lanka. Every resistant moment of the Sinhalese had Muslims in their ranks. So much so that we became the target of persecution under the colonial powers. Muslims did not become traitors to receive honours or land. For a period of roughly three centuries, between the arrival of the Portuguese in 1505 and the departure of the Dutch in 1795, the Muslims in the maritime provinces underwent untold hardships at the hands of the invaders for being patriots.

In the last 50 or 60 years, during which Sri Lanka mounted a Constitutional struggle, you will not come across one solitary Muslim voice against the aspirations of the majority Sinhalese people. Muslim representatives did not go before Royal Commissions, nor have they gone before the International Community with accusation and sought to blacken the image of the majority community - the Sinhalese people.

Our Arab ancestors were a peaceful and law abiding people with strong religious conviction. They came to Sri Lanka as traders whose arrival was not accompanied by any military subjugation. Therefore, there was no bitterness or animosity between the natives and the Muslims.

Colombo had a large Muslim Population when the Portuguese landed in 1505. They called the Muslims "Moors", a name derived from the Greek "Mauros" which denoted the Muslim inhabitants of Mauritania in North Africa, who overran Spain and Portugal in the 8th century. Although it was one time customary in Europe to refer to Muslims from - whatever country they came, by this name and in local usage the expression "Ceylon Moors" has since acquired an ethnic connotation.

Colombo population (2001) Sinhalese 270,932 - 42 percent, Tamils 199,429 - 31 percent, Muslims 163,167 - 25 percent and others 13,572 - two percent, Total 647,100 - 100 percent. Tamil-speaking peoples - Tamils and Muslims are 56 percent and over 2/3rd - 67.3 percent of the population of Colombo Divisional Secretariat Division. But the Divisional Secretary and the language of administration have always been Sinhalese. Government Employees in Colombo Municipal Council, Colombo Divisional Secretary’s Division, Police Stations, Hospitals, Maternity Homes and all the Government Departments in Colombo Municipal area are not according to ethnic ratio.

After the independence in 1948, various changes have been effected in the economic structure of the country. State monopolies in the wholesale establishment and retail sales outlets have seriously affected the employment opportunities of Colombo Muslims.

Habitat for Humanity, Sri Lanka - HFHSL, has reported that the Government lacks a national policy and firm commitment to provide adequate housing for the lower income families in Colombo. There are 18,619 Muslim housing units (2007) in Colombo Central, out of which more than 50 percent are old and unauthorized shanties in predominant Muslim areas. 10,000 new housing units costing US$100 million is the immediate need for the solution of housing problems of lower income Muslim families in Colombo.

Most of the Muslim Schools in Colombo started before 1970. Muslim political leaders have considered to improve the existing schools rather than opening new ones. There are 19 Muslim schools in Colombo City with nearly 20,000 students and 730 teachers, another 10,000 Muslim students are studying in non-Muslim schools.

Eighty-five percent of the students in Muslim schools are from the poor families, of this at least 25 percent are below poverty line. Shortage of infrastructure facilities and qualified and trained teachers are the main reasons for the poor examination results. Colombo Muslim schools are put together with government patronized highly developed schools like Ananda, Nalanda, Royal, Visaka and Devi Balika. The cut off marks for the university admission is the same for all the schools in Colombo District. This system has seriously affected the university entrance of Colombo Muslim students.

According to Police Narcotic Bureau, Muslim -youths in Colombo are very active in drug trafficking. Lack of employment opportunities, inadequate housing and shortage of proper educational infrastructure facilities in Muslim schools are the root cause for the Colombo Muslim youths to become drug traffickers and members of underworld terrorist gangs.

Dr. M. C. M. Kaleel and Mr. A. C. S. Hameed were the Chairmen of the UNP and Dr. Badiudin Mahmud, was the founder Secretary of the SLFP. The Muslim regresentatives in the UNP & SLFP were party to the Citizenship Act of 1948, Language Act of 1956, Finance Act of 1963. Also they were party to the removal of Section 29 and the Senate in the Soulbury Constitution and the removal of the Westminister System of Parliament and introducing the Proportional Representation Election System which have made the Muslims of Sri Lanka a community of political and social slaves.

From what had happened to the minorities in Sri Lanka, the Muslims find it difficult to accept the view that the UNP and the SLFP are truly national parties. They are Sinhala parties to look after the interests of the Sinhalese only. When one bears in mind the policies that have been persued by successive Governments, by one or the other of these parties, on citizenship, Language, Education, Employment and Land Alienation, Muslims find it difficult, in fact, impossible to accept their position as National Parties.

Political power by virtue of numbers have always been in the hands of the majority community - Sinhalese. This had led to serious discrimination of the minorities, Tamils and Muslims, by successive governments of the so called National political parties - UNP ‘and SLFP, since independence. It is the failure of the Sinhalese majority to recognize and respond to the legitimate rights and needs of the minorities that have led to dissatisfaction, terrorism and demand for separation.

A true Muslim cannot be a loyal member of such a political party whose policies run counter to the interests of his community or religion. When something is done to the detriment of Muslim community, Muslim members in national political parties dare not open their mouths in defence of their community in the appropriate forum for fear of losing cast in the party hierarchy. However, their membership in the party, and their holding office under it, are held out to the Muslim community in Sri Lanka and to the outside world as pointing to the high esteem in which the Muslims are being held in Sri Lanka and the political generosity of the ruling party.

We the "Sri Lankan Muslims" have our own ethnic, religious, cultural and political identity. As people who have been subjected to dual oppressions of majority hegemony and separatist terrorism in the social, economic and political spheres, our intensified political activities through powerful Muslim political organisations have assumed vital importance in the present context. Nowadays, the political tendency is to view matters in the light of Sinhala interests, Tamil interests and Muslim interests. Under these circumstances, it is the responsibility of the politically conscious members of the Muslim civil society to carry the burden of consolidating the political strength of the Muslims by organizing awareness programmes in predominant Muslim areas.

In the light of lessons learned from the past and with the goal of a dignified and peaceful co-existence on the basis of equality with the other communities, this is the most opportune time for us to raise our voices and wage our struggle to win our legitimate rights. In this regard, it has become an absolute necessity to establish a unified political command and an enlightened leadership with a view to articulate the political future of the Muslims.


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