‘Lanka’s religious harmony, example to other countries’
Rasika SOMARATHNA
The adviser to Iran’s spiritual leader, Ayatollah Tashkiri, said he
is pleased with the existing degree of inter-faith harmony in Sri Lanka.
The Irnanian religious leader expressed these views during a meeting
with Prime Minister D M Jayaratne, the Prime Minister’s media unit said.
During the meeting, Tashkiri said Iran was impressed with religious
coexistence and unity in Sri Lanka.
Ayatollah Tashkiri meets Prime Minister D M Jayaratne |
He said this was an example to other countries. He said he had
visited Sri Lanka several occasions and had met Buddhist, Hindu,
Christian and Islamic religious leaders and during discussions, he was
able to gain a thorough understanding about the level of religious
co-existence in the country.
Tashkiri also spoke about the situation in the Dambulla sacred site
and said the initiative taken by the Premier to resolve the issue
through dialogue was the most appropriate.
He said Sri Lanka after emerging from a very damaging conflict was
making commendable progress with peace and unity prevailing. “In this
backdrop, Iran is prepared to support Sri Lanka to the best of its
ability,” he added. Speaking about the challenges faced by his own
country, Tashkiri said international pressure brought upon his country
by some nations was not new, but had been there for some time. He added
that there was no truth to their allegations.
He said these challenges had strengthened the Iranian people’s
resolve.
Prime Minister Jayaratne said Sri Lanka was highly appreciative of
the support given by Iran. Speaking on the Dambulla incident, the Prime
Minister said he always advocated finding an amicable settlement to the
issue through dialogue, but some politicians with vested interests were
trying to use the issue for their petty political gain.
He told the visiting religious leader that finding an amicable
solution through discussion was the government’s intention. |