COLOMBO – Sri Lanka’s governing party parliamentarians on Tuesday (8) agreed to a proposal by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, to ban cattle slaughter in the country.
According to a senior minister, the prime minister had told the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) parliamentary group that the government would legislate against cattle slaughter soon, and that it was a proposal mooted a long time ago since the time of nationalist leader Anagarika Dharmapala, but not made into law due to various reasons.
Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardane was quoted in the local media as saying there was no objection to the prime minister’s proposal, introduced in his capacity of the Minister of Buddha Sasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs.
The prime minister had also said there would be no ban on beef imports, as redress to beef-eaters.
Cabinet Spokesman and Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella was quoted in the media as saying the prime minister would decide when he would submit the proposal to the government.
Most Buddhists and Hindus in Sri Lanka do not eat beef, and Buddhist Monks who heavily back the governing SLPP have been pressuring successive governments to ban cattle slaughter.
The SLPP draws most of its support from the majority Sinhala-Buddhist community and has openly said it does not need to appease the minority religious or ethnic groups to come to and retain political power.
Beef is regularly consumed by the minority Muslim community and Christians, particularly those who are of European descent.
Both these groups are not very influential in the wider politics of Sri Lanka and the ruling party has not courted these groups in their election campaign.
Sources in the prime minister’s office said “there was no formal proposal and certainly no cabinet papers have been prepared to enforce such a ban.”
-ENCL/economynext.com