Dr Yousef Al-Othaimeen - Secretary-General of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary-General, Dr Yousef Al-Othaimeen, received a phone call from Sri Lankan president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, where relations between the OIC and Sri Lanka were discussed as well as the situation of the Muslim community in Sri Lanka.
Al-Othaimeen, who heads the 57-member state body, praised the President's phone call and his willingness to “open up” and “reach out” to international organisations. The Secretary-General reaffirmed the OIC’s keenness to follow up on the conditions of Muslim communities and defend their rights in non-OIC member states. Al-Othaimeen welcomed the Sri Lankan Governments decision to respect the right of Muslims to bury their dead in accordance with Islamic rites, following the policy of forced cremations that the Government had enforced throughout the pandemic.
#OIC Secretary-General Dr. Yousef Al-Othaimeen, received a phone call from the President of #SriLanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, and discussed with him the existing relations between the OIC and Sri Lanka as well as the situation of the Muslim community in the country. pic.twitter.com/xGTqCvPkIL
— OIC (@OIC_OCI) March 21, 2021
The policy was condemned internationally, with protests occurring over the North-East calling for it to be dropped. Despite the policy being dropped, following a state visit from Pakistan’s Prime minister Imran Khan, weeks later the Rajapaksa regime saw it fit to introduce a reported ban of the burka.
The Sri Lankan government's reported forced closure of 1,000 Islamic schools and banning of the burka, comes despite continued concners over the marginalisation of the Muslim community. There was no mention of the closure of Islamic schools and the banning of the Burka between the Secretary-General and the President, in a phone call which comes days before a crucial UNHRC vote.
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