斯里蘭卡宗教紛爭，全國進入緊急狀態

Sri Lanka remained under a state of emergency Wednesday after ethnic Buddhist mob attacks against members of the minority Muslim population.

President Maithripala Sirisena imposed the decree Tuesday, a day after Sinhalese mobs attacked several mosques, plus dozens of Muslim-owned shops and businesses in the central district of Kandy. The body of a young Muslim man who was trapped when fire burned down his parents's small shop was found by firefighters Tuesday.

The unrest began on Saturday, when a Sinhalese truck driver was injured after he reportedly clashed with a group of Muslim youths in Kandy. The driver died of his injuries the next day.

Sri Lanka remains deeply divided along religious and ethnic lines since the end of the 36-year civil war in 2009, when government forces crushed an insurgency by the ethnic Tamil minority seeking an independent homeland. Hardline Sinhalese Buddhist nationalists have accused Muslims of attacking sacred Buddhist sites and forcing people to convert.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe condemned the "racist and violent acts" on Twitter Tuesday. "As a nation that endured a brutal war we are all aware of the values of peace, respect, unity & freedom," he wrote.

The U.S. Embassy in Colombo urged the government to act quickly against the perpetrators, protect the rights of religious minorities and lift the state of emergency as soon as possible.斯里蘭卡佛教徒對穆斯林發動襲擊，斯里蘭卡星期三繼續處於緊急狀態。

斯里蘭卡總統西里塞納星期二簽署了緊急狀態令。僧伽羅人暴民星期一在康堤中部地區襲擊了一些清真寺和幾十個穆斯林人開的商店和公司。一個年輕穆斯林男子被困在父母被焚燬的小店鋪裏，消防隊員星期二發現了他的屍體。

這一輪動亂是上週六開始的。當時，一個僧伽羅人卡車司機據報在康堤與一羣年輕穆斯林發生衝突後受傷，次日不治身亡。

斯里蘭卡持續36年的內戰2009年結束以來，一直存在宗教和民族矛盾。強硬派僧伽羅民族主義者指責穆斯林襲擊佛教聖地，強迫人們皈依伊斯蘭教。

斯里蘭卡總理拉尼爾·維克拉馬辛哈星期二在推特上譴責“種族和暴力行爲”。他寫道：“對於一個經歷過殘酷戰爭的國家來說，我們都知道和平、尊重、團結和自由的價值觀念。”

美國駐科倫坡大使館敦促斯里蘭卡政府迅速對肇事者採取行動，保護宗教少數羣體，儘快取消緊急狀態。