The Sri Lankan government expelled 161 members of Jamaah Tablig (JT) from abroad on charges of violating visa regulations. They preach in mosques, even though they entered Sri Lanka using a tourist visa.
"They don't have the right to preach at mosques because they arrive on tourist visas," said Sri Lanka Immigration Chief Chulananda Perera, Monday (22/1). “They have violated immigration laws. The tourist visa is not for preaching the religion of Islam, "he was quoted as saying by the news agency AFP.
According to him, some local Muslims complained that the content of their lectures did not teach a moderate form of Islam. He added that the JT members have vacation visas and visit their relatives and families, not to preach about Islam. The JT da'wah activist from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Maldives and Arab countries had to leave Sri Lanka on January 31.
The Tablighi Jamaat is a popular international Islamic movement in Sri Lanka. They arrived last month. Perera also said some local Muslims complained that they did not teach moderate Islam. "Foreign preachers who wish to teach Islam in Sri Lanka must seek permission from the religious department," said Perera.
A source told the BBC that JT has a tradition of sending its members to preach at places of worship, inviting Muslims to devote more time to their faith and act more piously. "Any idea that they are militants is ridiculous," the source added.
Sri Lankan Muslims are estimated to make up 9% of the total population. Sri Lankan Muslims are the third minority group after the Sinhalese and Tamils. (Mel / Bbc / Rnw / ddhongkong.org). *
