Speaking at the Founder’s Day ceremony of the All Ceylon Union of Muslim League Youth Fronts on Tuesday (20) , former diplomat and political analyst Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka issued a strong critique of Sri Lanka’s current foreign policy direction, particularly the state-supported presence of Chabad Houses and the influx of Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) personnel into the country.
Delivering the keynote address at the event held at the J.R. Jayawardena Cultural Centre, Dr. Jayatilleka questioned the rationale and implications of hosting Chabad Houses in Sri Lanka — a country with no historic Jewish population.
“Chabad Houses are not mere synagogues,” he said. “They belong to a particularly right-wing ultra-Zionist religious offshoot. And they’re provided security by the Sri Lankan state. So what are we going to do about that?”
Dr. Jayatilleka traced Sri Lanka’s past foreign policy, recalling the bipartisan stance taken by successive governments in solidarity with the Palestinian cause. “Madam Bandaranaike suspended diplomatic relations with Israel,” he reminded the audience. “It didn’t matter if you were center-right or center-left — there was a bipartisan consensus.”
He expressed concern over what he described as a drastic departure from this tradition. “Now, we have a situation in which Sri Lanka has become a rest and recreation spot for IDF soldiers engaged in what is almost certainly a genocidal war in Gaza.”
Referring to protests by local Sri Lankan surfers in Arugam Bay and an award-winning film portraying IDF soldiers seeking rehabilitation there, Dr. Jayatilleka likened the popular tourist area to “an occupied territory.”
He laid particular blame on both the former administration of President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Minister Manusha Nanayakkara, as well as the current government under President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath, for allowing this policy drift.
Calling out the current silence of the Muslim political leadership in Parliament, Dr. Jayatilleka urged a return to active engagement and pressure politics, particularly from within the Muslim community.
“In previous decades, it was the democratic Muslim leadership that mobilized public opinion and influenced political parties to maintain Sri Lanka’s solidarity with Palestine. Today, we see none of that,” he lamented. “There is silence.”
He concluded his address with a plea: “We must not abandon our tradition of solidarity with Palestine. We must stand up and be counted as having done our duty as fellow human beings during this time of torment for the people of Gaza.”
Also present at the event was former Speaker Karu Jayasuriya, who paid tribute to the late Deshamanya M. A. Bakir Makar, former Speaker and founding President of the All Ceylon Union of Muslim League Youth Fronts. A commemorative book compiling parliamentary speeches on Deshamanya Bakir Makar, edited by Heras Fernando, was launched during the ceremony.
Mr. Sham Nawas, National President of the All Ceylon Union of Muslim League Youth Fronts welcomed the audience while the vote of thanks was delivered by Assistant Secretary Ahmed Farhan.
The gathering drew a diverse crowd of Sinhala and Muslim community leaders, parliamentarians, foreign diplomats, scholars, district representatives and former presidents of the All Ceylon Union of Muslim League Youths and many others.
