A local council has unanimously passed a resolution calling for the immediate removal of a Chabad Jewish Cultural Center, built in the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka by an Israeli religious group.
When the Attalachennai Pradeshiya Sabha, chaired by A.S.M. Uwais of Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, met earlier this week, Vice Chairman Farooq Najeeth had presented a resolution expressing support for the Palestinian people; reported the Provincial correspondents.
The resolution, which emphasize that Palestine should be recognized as an independent country and that it is the responsibility of all countries in the international community to ensure the human rights, territorial integrity and independence of its people, was unanimously passed by the council, they stated further.
After the council’s proceedings concluded, a peaceful protest was launched under the leadership of the Chairman of the Attalachennai Pradeshiya Sabha to bring the proposal to the public’s attention.
Speaking to the journalists, Chairman of the Addalachennai Pradeshiya Sabha A.S.M. Uwais requested that, as the Attalachennai Pradeshiya Sabha passed resolutions to immediately remove the Chabad House established in Arugam Bay, Ampara District, other local councils also should follow this and take immediate action to remove the Chabad Houses established in the country.
“The other councils also should follow Addalaichenai as it is the responsibility of all citizens of this country to immediately remove the Chabad Houses to protect the Muslim people and this country. They have planned to plunder this country just as they plundered Palestine in the past and are constructing buildings like Chabad Houses now everywhere they see. We condemn such actions and have passed a resolution. In this matter, the President and the government should take steps to protect this country and protect the Muslim people.”
Chabad houses have now been officially established in Sri Lanka’s tourist paradises such as Ella, Arugam Bay, and Weligama, as well as in the economic hub of Colombo. The fact that those establishments, as well as unregistered Jewish centers, are given armed state security has also been debated in Parliament. At those places Jewish religious activities are carried out and the Jewish religious kosher food and beverages are also sold.
The Chabad-Lubavitch sect, which is reported to be run by 4,900 Jewish families and has 3,500 centers in a hundred countries, is a conservative, hardline organization that operates in secrecy, minimizing interactions with outsiders.
A group of Sri Lankans who held a silent protest last month in front of the Chabad Center in Colombo alleged that Israeli tourists who have overstayed their visas are conducting business at these centers.
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