1976 anti-Muslim violence in Puttalam

Last updated
1976 anti-Muslim violence in Puttalam
Sri Lanka districts Puttalam.svg
Location of Sri Lanka
Location Puttalam District, Sri Lanka
Date31 January–7 February 1976
Target Muslim civilians
Attack type
shooting, riots, arson, looting, assault
Weaponsswords, axe, clubs, fire, guns, petrol bombs
Deaths11
Injureddozens
Perpetrators Sri Lankan Police, Sinhalese mobs
Motiveeconomic rivalry, majoritarianism

1976 anti-Muslim violence in Puttalam was a series of organised violent events by Sinhalese mobs against the Muslim population of Puttalam in northwestern Sri Lanka, which occurred between 31 January and 7 February 1976. The violence was carried out under the leadership of a Buddhist monk and with the complicity of local authorities. It culminated in the killing of seven Muslims in the Puttalam Jumma Mosque by the police on 2 February. Overall, eleven Muslims were killed, dozens injured, [1] 271 Muslim houses, 44 Muslim shops [2] and two mosques were burned. [3] It was the second major outbreak of communal violence between the two communities since 1915. [4]

Contents

Background

In the early 1970s there was a growing anti-Muslim sentiment among the Sinhalese over alleged Muslim privileges and by the mid-1970s there had been several attacks on Muslims in various parts of the country by Sinhalese mobs [5] and police which resulted in Muslim houses and shops being burned. [6] During this time there was also a rising communal tension between the two communities in the Muslim-dominated Puttalam town over jobs and land which was inflamed by the influx of Sinhalese settlers and workers to the region from the south. [7] Local Muslims felt discriminated by the state which gave preferential treatment to Sinhalese settlers. [8] Sinhalese also resented Muslim monopoly over trade in the town and sought to replace them. [9]

Several Muslims saw the anger of the Sinhalese as rooted in class. There was a large economic gap between the wealthy Muslims of Puttalam town and poorer Sinhalese in surrounding villages. They also claimed that Sinhalese vegetable sellers and rice smugglers were victims of intimidation and theft by Muslim porters. Because the smugglers had no recourse in the legal system, they turned to Kolitha Thero, a Buddhist monk and the incumbent of the Puttalam Buddhist Centre, and the Puttalam Government Agent Rajapaksha. [10]

Starting in early January 1976, there were over a month-long clashes between the two communities in the town sparked by dispute over a bus stand being shifted away from the town. [7] The stand's location was originally near Muslim shops, so the relocation cut down business for them. Furthermore, it encouraged Sinhalese to stop and re-route buses through Sinhalese areas. Kolitha Thero and Rajapaksha were seen as playing a role in the relocation. [11] Kolitha Thero also played a leading role in the anti-Muslim campaign that involved Sinhalese employees of the Ceylon Transport Board (CTB). Sinhalese police officers of Puttalam also mistreated Muslims. [12]

Anti-Muslim violence

Prelude

On 30 January 1977, the headquarters sub-inspector of the Puttalam police, de Mel, forcibly removed the road barriers outside the Mohideen Jummah Mosque meant to facilitate the Friday Muslim prayers. Subsequently, Muslims of the mosque marched to the Puttalam police station and lodged a complaint against the offending officer. On the next day the higher authorities promised the Muslims disciplinary action against those responsible. [13] Another account suggested that the police perceived the appearance of the large crowd as an attempt at intimidation and they responded by moving the bus stand further away from the town close to the Buddhist Centre in a Sinhalese area which left Muslim passersby vulnerable. [14]

31 January

On the same day at 1:00 pm, news of Muslim workers being attacked by Sinhalese workers at the Puttalam Cement Factory was spreading. By 3:00 pm, a Muslim shop was burned down by a Sinhalese mob near the Cement Factory. When the Muslim MP for Puttalam requested the Puttalam police intervene, the sub-inspector, de Mel, refused, claiming the police jeep was under repair and also refused when the MP offered his own jeep. Later that day several organised Sinhalese mobs started operating. The mob under the leadership of Kolitha Thero assaulted Muslims passing by the Buddhist Centre. A Muslim teacher named Ameer suffered severe injuries and was hospitalised. Buses coming into the town were stoned, Muslim passengers pulled out and assaulted. CTB bus drivers also assaulted their Muslim passengers on the instruction of the monk. [13]

One Sinhalese mob in Sirambiyadi looted and burned Muslim shops. Another mob mainly consisting of CTB employees assaulted, stripped and robbed Muslim passengers at the main bus station of Puttalam. The Sinhalese mob at Pottuvilu attacked Muslim cultivators and burned down their houses. Muslims outside the Puttalam town were prevented from fleeing into it by the police and reinforcements which encouraged Sinhalese mobs to attack them. [15]

1 February

On the next day, Muslim shops in Palavi, Madurankuli and Pottuvillu were burned, and in Kottukachcheri Muslims were attacked by Sinhalese mobs. CTB bus drivers were also fanning the flames by spreading false rumours against Muslims, accusing them of killing Sinhalese in Puttalam. [16]

2 February

By the morning of 2 February, Muslims of Puttalam were apprehensive, fueled by the rumours that the police had instructed the Army and the Navy to leave the town and that the town was going to be attacked by Sinhalese employees of the Cement Factory and the CTB and a Sinhalese mob from the outside. A crowd of Muslims who had gathered near the Jummah Mosque attacked buses and lorries passing by on the misassumption that they were bringing the Sinhalese attackers. [17] Meanwhile, a deputation of Muslims had gone to the police station to discuss the incidents. A member of the deputation, Dr. Ilyas of the People's Committee, recounted that Headquarters Inspector Edward refused to listen and ordered the police to open fire at the crowd. [18]

A Muslim assistant superintendent of police arrived at the scene and warned the crowd to leave as the police was preparing to shoot them. Some left while others attacked the properties of Sinhalese. [17] Two police units approached the mosque from the east and west sides. The western police shot at shops on the east side, and Edward had fired into the air. The crowd scattered, seeking refuge either in the mosque or the shops. Then, western police turned their firing to the mosque, and subsequently, the eastern police too opened fire. [19] Between 18 and 20 Muslims inside the mosque were shot and seven of them died. [17] Another estimate suggested fifteen were critically injured. [3] Some of the crowd later theorized that the eastern police opened fire because they mistook the western police's gunfire to be coming from Muslims in the mosque. A Muslim police constable thought that there had been shooting from the shops, but did not believe that Muslims had fired from the mosque. [20]

During this time Kolitha Thero went to the Puttalam Cement Factory and spread false rumours among the Sinhalese workers about Sinhalese children being killed by the Muslims. A group of the Sinhalese workers went to the Kallady junction where they tied up a Muslim boy and poured petrol on him. The monk told them to collect more Muslim boys to be burned alive. When a Navy patrol arrived at the scene, the mob fled and the boy was rescued. The monk collected weapons in the area to attack Muslims in the Puttalam town. The mob led by Kolitha Thero and another mob at Sirambiyadiya burned an oil factory owned by a Muslim while the police nearby did not intervene. In Sirambiyadiya, a Sinhalese mob looted and burned down Muslim shops, and killed a Muslim watchman. The mob led by the monk entered the Puttalam town and threw petrol bombs into Muslim houses; it was later dispersed by the Army. [21]

A 500-strong Sinhalese mob armed with weapons set out to burn the jeep of the town headman, Abul Hasan, which was transporting some of the wounded Muslims from the mosque shooting. The Army arrived and dispersed the mob. Later on the mob went to Palavi by bus provided to them by the police and burned down Muslim shops. At this place some police officers directed the buses carrying Muslim passengers toward the Cement Factory where Muslims were being attacked by a Sinhalese mob. When one such bus reached the area, a Muslim boy named Rasheed attempted to flee but was caught by the mob, he was hit on the head with an axe, shot and burned to death. [22]

Three buses carrying Sinhalese mobs came to Madurankuliya immediately after the police declared a curfew and the mobs looted shops as the police looked on. A Muslim named Qasim along with his house and shop were burned by the mob at the same place. [23]

3 February

On the next day the Sinhalese CTB bus drivers were spreading anti-Muslim rumours to neighbouring districts where violence also erupted. During the night a Sinhalese mob came to Nikaweratiya in government lorries and disabled the power lines; they then looted and burned shops and houses, and assaulted Muslims while appeals to the local police went unanswered. A Muslim village called Nallachchi was completely burned down by the mob. In Nochchiyagama, Sinhalese mob looted and burned shops and houses while the police took no action. [23]

4 February

On 4 February, burning and looting continued. The Puttalam police took no action against the Sinhalese culprits in response to Muslim complaints. Thereafter, police investigating officers from Colombo came to Puttalam and took immediate action by arresting many culprits. However, when Kolitha Thero made a journey to Colombo to protest against this, most of these officers were withdrawn and many of the culprits were released. After the government came to the conclusion that the Puttalam police was complicit in the violence, the Army was given the authority to maintain law and order. By 7 February the violence had ceased. [24]

Aftermath

The police took the deceased from the mosque and issued death certificates. Some Muslims accused the police of disrespecting the dead bodies. The injured were taken to Dr. Illyas' home or the Chilaw hospital under guard. Funerals of the dead Muslims took place the next day with police protection, but there was a curfew and Muslims were unpermitted to leave their homes or the town for several days. [25]

A government fact-finding team visited Puttalam, and the Ceylon Daily Mirror carried a report that the team suggested to Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike that the riots resulted from a small dispute being inflamed by "political spies". It also reported that disturbances in Nikaweratiya were caused by outsiders. [26]

In parliament, Bandaranaike falsely blamed the mosque shooting on Muslims firing at the police after being misinformed by the Puttalam police. The government transferred the police officers from Puttalam but refused calls for a public inquiry into the violence. [27] A magisterial inquiry ruled the shooting as "justifiable homicide". Bandaranaike also blamed "politically motivated mischief makers" for the communal tensions. [28]

Tamil leader S. J. V. Chelvanayakam raised the issue of the mosque shooting in the parliament while some Muslim leaders remained silent. M. H. M. Ashraff, founder of the Muslim United Front, appreciated this gesture and campaigned for Chelvanayagam's newly-formed Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) in its goal of establishing an independent state for the Tamil-speaking people. [29]

Two months after the riots, UNP MP M. H. M. Naina Marikar told parliament that Puttalam Muslims had been traumatised by the February violence and that those displaced had not been given adequate assistance or shelter. He also had complained that Rajapaksha, despite having earlier promised compensation, did not provide any. Muslims reported that compensation of Rs. 25,000 for the deceased and Rs. 15,000 for the injured were awarded, but property damage was not compensated. [30]

Legacy

TULF's historic Vaddukoddai Resolution adopted on 14 May 1976 cited the police and mob violence against Muslims as examples of government brutality towards Tamil-speaking people to terrorize them. [31]

The UNP sought to politicize the violence. During its campaign for the 1977 Sri Lankan parliamentary election, it made an election promise that, if elected, it would launch an inquiry into the violence. However, Haleem Ishak, a Muslim SLFP politician, noted that it did not keep the promise after election. Naina Marikar claimed that Muslims who were killed or injured were given compensation by the UNP government. [32]

Citations

  1. ↑ Asad 1999, pp. 55–63.
  2. ↑ Ali, Ameer (2014). "Political Buddhism, Islamic Orthodoxy and Open Economy: The Toxic Triad in Sinhalese–Muslim Relations in Sri Lanka". Journal of Asian and African Studies. 49 (3): 307. doi:10.1177/0021909613485708.
  3. 1 2 "Sri Lanka: letter on Puttalam killings". Impact International. 22 July 1976. p. 10.
  4. ↑ Asad 1999, p. 1.
  5. ↑ de Silva, K. M. (1981). A History of Sri Lanka. University of California Press. p. 552. ISBN   978-0-520-04320-6.
  6. ↑ Rajasingham, K.T. (26 January 2002). "SRI LANKA: THE UNTOLD STORY Chapter 24: Tamil militancy - a manifestation". Asia Times Online. Archived from the original on 3 May 2009.
  7. 1 2 de Silva, Premakumara; Haniffa, Farzana; Bastin, Rohan (2019), Ratuva, Steven (ed.), "Ethnicity and Violence in Sri Lanka: An Ethnohistorical Narrative", The Palgrave Handbook of Ethnicity, Springer Singapore, pp. 12–13, doi:10.1007/978-981-13-0242-8_47-1, ISBN   978-981-13-0242-8
  8. ↑ Phadnis, Urmila (1979). "Political Profile of the Muslim Minority of Sri Lanka". International Studies. 18 (1): 42. doi:10.1177/002088177901800103.
  9. ↑ Asad 1999, p. 63.
  10. ↑ Nagaraj & Haniffa 2017, pp. 14–15.
  11. ↑ Nagaraj & Haniffa 2017, p. 7.
  12. ↑ Asad 1999, p. 56.
  13. 1 2 Asad 1999, p. 57.
  14. ↑ Nagaraj & Haniffa 2017, p. 8.
  15. ↑ Asad 1999, pp. 57–58.
  16. ↑ Asad 1999, p. 58.
  17. 1 2 3 Asad 1999, pp. 58–59.
  18. ↑ Nagaraj & Haniffa 2017, p. 9.
  19. ↑ Nagaraj & Haniffa 2017, p. 10-11.
  20. ↑ Nagaraj & Haniffa 2017, p. 10.
  21. ↑ Asad 1999, p. 59.
  22. ↑ Asad 1999, pp. 59–60.
  23. 1 2 Asad 1999, p. 60.
  24. ↑ Asad 1999, pp. 60–61.
  25. ↑ Nagaraj & Haniffa 2017, p. 12.
  26. ↑ Nagaraj & Haniffa 2017, p. 13.
  27. ↑ Asad 1999, pp. 61–62.
  28. ↑ Nagaraj & Haniffa 2017, pp. 13–14.
  29. ↑ Jeyaraj, D.B.S. (16 September 2020). "Remembering SLMC Leader M.H.M. Ashraff". Daily FT.
  30. ↑ Nagaraj & Haniffa 2017, p. 14.
  31. ↑ "VADDUKODDAI RESOLUTION". Ilankai Tamil Sangam.
  32. ↑ Nagaraj & Haniffa 2017, p. 19.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black July</span> 1983 anti-Tamil riots in Sri Lanka

Black July was an anti-Tamil pogrom that occurred in Sri Lanka during July 1983. The pogrom was premeditated, and was finally triggered by a deadly ambush on a Sri Lankan Army patrol by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on 23 July 1983, which killed 13 soldiers. Although initially orchestrated by members of the ruling UNP, the pogrom soon escalated into mass violence with significant public participation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1958 anti-Tamil pogrom</span> First islandwide Sinhalese-Tamil riots in Ceylon

The 1958 anti-Tamil pogrom and riots in Ceylon, also known as the 58 riots, refer to the first island-wide ethnic riots and pogrom to target the minority Tamils in the Dominion of Ceylon after it became an independent dominion from Britain in 1948. The riots lasted from 22 May until 29 May 1958 although sporadic disturbances happened even after the declaration of emergency on 27 May 1958. The estimates of the murders range, based on recovered bodies, from 158 to 1,500. Although most of the victims were Tamils, Sinhalese and their property were also affected by retaliatory attacks by Tamil mobs throughout the Batticaloa and Jaffna districts. As the first full-scale race riot in the country in over forty years, the events of 1958 shattered the trust the communities had in one another and led to further polarisation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1977 anti-Tamil pogrom</span> Second islandwide Sinhalese-Tamil clash in Sri Lanka

The 1977 anti-Tamil pogrom in Sri Lanka followed the 1977 general elections in Sri Lanka where the Sri Lankan Tamil nationalistic Tamil United Liberation Front won a plurality of minority Sri Lankan Tamil votes. In the elections, the party stood for secession. An official government estimate put the death toll at 125, whereas other sources estimate that around 300 Tamils were killed by Sinhalese mobs. Human rights groups, such as the UTHR-J, accused the newly elected UNP-led government of orchestrating the violence.

The Anuradhapura massacre occurred in Sri Lanka in 1985 and was carried out by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. This was the largest massacre of Sinhalese civilians by the LTTE to date; it was also the first major operation carried out by the LTTE outside a Tamil majority area. Initially, EROS claimed responsibility for the massacre, but it later retracted the statement, and joined the PLOTE in denouncing the incident. The groups later accused the LTTE for the attack. Since then, no Tamil militant group has admitted to committing the massacre. However, state intelligence discovered that the operation was ordered by the LTTE's leader Velupillai Prabhakaran. He assigned the massacre to the LTTE Mannar commander Victor and it was executed by Victor's subordinate Anthony Kaththiar. The LTTE claimed the attack was in revenge of the 1985 Valvettiturai massacre, where the Sri Lanka Army killed 70 Tamil civilians in Prabhakaran's hometown. In 1988, the LTTE claimed that the massacre was planned and executed under the guidance of Indian intelligence agency, RAW.

The Kattankudy Mosque Massacre was the killing of over 147 Muslim men and boys on 3 August, 1990. Around 30 armed Tamil militants raided two mosques in Kattankudy where over 300 people were prostrating in Isha prayers. The Sri Lankan government, survivors, and observers accuse the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) of committing the crime. The LTTE denied involvement and never retracted the denial.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1956 anti-Tamil pogrom</span> First major Sinhalese-Tamil clash in Ceylon

The 1956 anti-Tamil pogrom, also known as the Gal Oya riots, was the first organised pogrom against Sri Lankan Tamils in the Dominion of Ceylon. It began with anti-Tamil rioting in Colombo, followed by anti-Sinhalese rioting in the Batticaloa District. The worst of the violence took place in the Gal Oya valley after the Batticaloa attacks, where local majority Sinhalese colonists and employees of the Gal Oya Development Board commandeered government vehicles, dynamite and weapons and massacred minority Tamils. It is estimated that over 150 people, mostly Tamils, had died during the violence. The police and army were eventually able to bring the situation under control.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bodu Bala Sena</span> Buddhist extremist organization in Sri Lanka

Bodu Bala Sena, also abbreviated as BBS is a far-right anti-liberalist, and ultranationalist Sinhalese Buddhist organization, and a break-away faction from the right-wing nationalist Jathika Hela Urumaya party. The BBS generally opposes pluralist and democratic ideologies, and criticizes non-extremist Buddhist monks for not taking action against the rise of other religions within Sri Lanka.

Buddhist scripture condemns violence but varying textual interpretations has been used to allow it. Ahimsa, a term meaning "not to injure", is a primary virtue in Buddhism. However, Buddhists have historically used scriptures to justify violence or form exceptions to commit violence for various reasons. As found in other religious traditions, Buddhism has an extensive history of violence dating back to its inception.

The Mawanella riots was a series of attacks by the majority Sinhalese in the town of Mawanella, that resulted in the deaths of two people and left more than 15 injured in the clashes and also leading to destruction of millions of rupees worth property in the region.

The 1915 Sinhalese-Muslim riots was a widespread and prolonged ethnic riot in the island of Ceylon between Sinhalese Buddhists and the Ceylon Moors. The riots were eventually suppressed by the British colonial authorities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1985 Trincomalee massacres</span> Attacks on Tamil civilians by Sri Lankan military and home guards

The 1985 Trincomalee massacres refers to a series of mass murder of Tamil civilians by the Sri Lankan military and Sinhalese home guards in Trincomalee District, Sri Lanka. In a succession of events that spanned over two months, hundreds of Tamil civilians were massacred and thousands were driven out by the Sri Lankan military and Sinhalese mobs in order to colonize the area. Almost every Tamil settlement in the district was destroyed during this well-orchestrated campaign to drive out the local Tamil population. Several Tamil women were also raped. In September 1985, the entire Tamil population of Trincomalee town was displaced to forests and refugee camps in an attack that wiped out the town, including the destruction of 12 temples and a mosque. Since August 16, over 50,000 Tamils who were forced to flee the town ended up in refugee camps in the Jaffna and Batticaloa districts.

The 2014 anti-Muslim riots in Sri Lanka were religious and ethnic riots in June 2014 in south-western Sri Lanka. Muslims and their property were attacked by Sinhalese Buddhists in the towns of Aluthgama, Beruwala and Dharga Town in Kalutara District. At least four people were killed and 80 injured. Hundreds were made homeless following attacks on homes, shops, factories, mosques and a nursery. 10,000 people were displaced by the riots. The riots followed rallies by Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), a hard line Buddhist group. The BBS was widely blamed for inciting the riots but it has denied responsibility. The mainstream media in Sri Lanka censored news about the riots following orders from the Sri Lankan government.

The Sri Lankan anti-Muslim riots were a series of religious riots targeting Muslims that began in the town of Ampara located in Sri Lanka on 26 February 2018, spreading to the Kandy District from March 2 until its end on March 10, 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1987 Eastern Province massacres</span> Massacres of Sinhalese in the Eastern Province by Tamil militant groups

The 1987 Eastern Province massacres were a series of massacres of the Sinhalese population in the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka by Tamil mobs and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during the Sri Lankan Civil War. Though they began spontaneously, they became more organized, with the LTTE leading the violence. Over 200 Sinhalese were killed by mob and militant violence, and over 20,000 fled the Eastern Province. The violence has been described as having had the appearance of a pogrom, with the objective of removing Sinhalese from the Eastern Province.

The Sri Lankan anti-Muslim riots were a series of religiously motivated riots targeting Muslims in Sri Lanka. The riots originated as isolated incidents in the aftermath of the Easter bombings in the nation, beginning in Chilaw and subsequently spreading to much of the Northwestern Province.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1983 anti-Tamil pogrom in Trincomalee</span> Attacks on Tamil civilians by Sinhalese mobs and security forces

The 1983 anti Tamil pogrom in Trincomalee was organised violence by Sinhalese mobs and security forces, which targeted the Tamil population of Trincomalee between June and July 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2006 anti-Tamil riots in Trincomalee</span> Attacks on Tamils by Sinhalese mobs and Navy

2006 anti-Tamil riots in Trincomalee were a series of organized violence against the Tamil population of the Trincomalee District in eastern Sri Lanka that followed a bomb blast on 12 April 2006. The violence was mainly carried out by Sinhalese mobs, Navy personnel and home guards with the overall complicity of the Sri Lankan security forces and police. By 20 April, the violence had left over 20 civilians dead, 75 injured, over 30 shops and 100 houses burned, and over 3,000 people displaced.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.