So far, persecuted religious minorities from Christian and Muslim communities appear to have acted with remarkable restraint, depending on democratic and peaceful struggles to seek justice, protect themselves and their rights. However, the continued attacks and impunity points to the danger that Sri Lanka could once again find itself plunging into a more serious and violent religious conflict, less than 5 years after a bloody ethnic war had ended. Decisive and immediate action by the state, particularly the Police to stop and prevent further attacks and ensuring accountability for past attacks is key to prevent more serious outbreak of religion based violence. It is also crucial to ensure all religions enjoy equal status in law, without any particular religion being given foremost place.

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