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Country belongs to the Sinhalese – BBS

Sri Lanka “belongs to the Sinhalese” said the leader of Buddhist nationalist organisation Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), in an interview to the BBC this week.

"This country belongs to the Sinhalese, and it is the Sinhalese who built up its civilisation, culture and settlements,” said BBS secretary general Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara from his organisation’s offices in Colombo. “The white people created all the problems," he added.

"We are trying to... go back to the country of the Sinhalese," continued the Buddhist monk. "Until we correct this, we are going to fight."

Spokesperson Dilantha Withanage however denied that his group endorsed violence, saying that "BBS is not a terror organisation, BBS is not promoting violence against anyone... but we are against certain things."

See more from the BBC piece - The darker side of Buddhism

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