Sri Lanka on Tuesday banned the sale of the latest issue of Time magazine because of the newsweekly’s feature article on terrorism, describing recent clashes between Buddhists and Muslims.
The government said the ban was out of fear the story on Buddhist-Muslim clashes could fuel religious-related disputes, Agence France-Presse reported. The magazine cover also was criticized for the photo of a leading Myanmar monk that appeared above the headline, “The Face of Buddhist Terror,” AFP said.
“By operation of law, these magazines will be confiscated,” said the country’s customs department spokesman, Leslie Gamini, in the AFP report. “We did not allow this issue to be distributed in Sri Lanka because we felt it could hurt the religious sentiments of the people.”
Readers still can access the article on Time’s online news site, AFP said.
Buddhists hold the majority in Sri Lanka. Clashes with Muslims and other minority religious groups have been on the rise in recent months.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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