Is there discrimination against Sri Lankan Muslims in the field of cricket?
by Izeth Hussain
The focus of this article is on what looks like discrimination against Sri Lankan Muslims in the field of cricket. This might seem to the average reader to be a matter of parochial and marginal importance, something of interest to Muslims and cricket fans, and therefore not a matter of national importance. I want to make a few preliminary observations to suggest that what looks like anti-Muslim discrimination is indeed a matter of national importance because it seems to show that the Sinhalese majority is not prepared to offer any political solution over our ethnic problems on any internationally recognized basis.
One way of solving ethnic problems is through devolution. It applies when a minority ethnic group claims to have a homeland, which can lead to a demand for autonomy or outright separation. Sri Lanka came to terms with India to solve the Tamil ethnic problem through devolution in the form of the 13th Amendment, which has in fact become part of the Constitution. What requires to be done in the aftermath of the total military victory over the LTTE is to apply 13A fully or with some modifications, and extend its application to the North. But the Government is not giving that option any priority at all, nor is the opposition making an issue of it. The prospect is one of endless vacillation over a political solution on the basis of devolution.
What really is the problem? I believe that the problem is that the Sinhalese, or more particularly the Sinhalese at the power elite level, are deeply allergic to the notion of sharing power with the minorities. In fact the farcical application of 13A up to now suggests that the Sinhalese at power elite levels are deeply allergic to sharing power even with their fellow-Sinhalese. How then can they be expected to jump with joy over the prospect of sharing power with the Tamils after the LTTE has been right royally whacked? The problem about a policy of vacillation of course is that Tamil Nadu, Delhi, and the Tamil diaspora have not been whacked by our troops. Furthermore the international community – meaning really the powerful Western countries – will see our vacillation as morally ugly prevarication. The situation could become rather nasty, perhaps even very dangerous, to Sri Lanka, a point that I have been making ad nauseam in earlier articles.
However devolution, the sharing of power, is not the only internationally recognized way of solving ethnic problems. There is also the way of giving fair and equal treatment to the minorities. According to widespread popular perceptions the world is chock-a-block with ethnic rivalry and dissension, leading too often to conflict which in turn can lead to the setting up of separate states. It is an accurate enough perception in terms of one perspective, but if you change the perspective another picture emerges. There are in the world no more than four ethnically homogeneous states, meaning states in which the minorities are so minuscule that they can under no circumstances constitute any significant problem for the majorities.
According to some criteria there are twelve such states. The rest of the globe pullulates with thousands of ethnic minorities, over four thousand of them if we go on the linguistic criterion. In terms of this perspective the surprising thing is not there are so many ethnic conflicts leading to separation, but that there are proportionately so few of them. What is the explanation? It is that in the comparatively few cases in which there are claims to a homeland the separatist drive is halted through devolution, while in the rest the minorities are given by and large – though there can be many cases where the fate of the minorities is ghastly – fair and equal treatment.
The fundamental reason why our major ethnic problem, the Tamil one, has proved to be an imbroglio over so many decades is that the Sinhalese power elite has been allergic to sharing power with the minorities, and therefore cannot bear the thought of devolution, and also because it has been allergic to giving fair and equal treatment to the minorities. The historical record shows that it was in fact this second factor that drove the Tamils to demand devolution and then separation.
I will now give some material to illustrate what looks like a failure to give fair and equal treatment to Muslims in the field of cricket. This particular field has a very special importance because of the widely prevalent notion that at least in cricket we have a Sri Lankan nation, a field of activity in which all our ethnic groups have come together. This notion results largely from the fact that a Tamil, Muralitheran, has been given the status of a national icon. But one Tamil icon does not constitute a nation. Our failure to build a nation – as shown by anti-Muslim discrimination – is total.
The immediate provocation for this article are some observations made recently by Trevor Chesterfield about the strange case of Ferveez Mahroof who has not played cricket at the national level for about a year. But I will first go into earlier material suggesting anti-Muslim discrimination. There is not much of such material because the preferred games of the SL Muslims have been rugger and football, not cricket, producing in Ashy Cader a ruggerite who is regarded by many aficionados as Sri Lanka’s greatest. I am not aware of charges of anti-Muslim discrimination in rugger etc; only in cricket.
The first case I have in mind is that of M.A.Wahid who in the pre-Second World War days established himself as an outstanding spinner, and also a steady batsman. I am told that he was so outstanding as a schoolboy that Dr C.H.Gunasekera went to watch him bowl as part of the program to promote SL cricket. But even though his performance in club cricket was consistent, Wahid rarely made it to the national team. However he was chosen for a tour of India in the late ‘thirties or very early ‘forties. Five matches were played, in all of which the SL side fared poorly. Wahid was chosen only for the last match, in which he put up an excellent performance including a half-century as an opening batsman. I.H.Walbeoff, the solitary Burgher in the team, was not chosen for any of the five matches. The Muslim perception, I distinctly recall, was that throughout his cricketing career Wahid was often the victim of anti-Muslim discrimination.
In the subsequent period up to the time we got test status three Muslims made it to the national team without any undue difficulty, namely the two openers Makin Salih and A.C.M.Lafir, and the spin bowler Abu Fuad. There were no complaints about anti-Muslim discrimination during that period. After we got test status the situation changed abruptly with the strange treatment accorded to Uvais Karnain. He had what the newspapers called a "dream debut" with both bat and ball against New Zealand in a one-day match. He failed in the next match, and perhaps in another as well, and was quickly dropped from the national team, never I believe to be given his opportunity again. Was that axing due to anti-Muslim prejudice?
A possible answer is suggested by a newspaper letter written by Hamid Kareem. In the latter half of the ‘nineties a newspaper had some material on the charge that SL Muslims used to cheer the Pakistan side against the Sri Lankan one, a familiar charge around that time. In his letter Kareem stated that he was present on the occasion when Uvais Karnain failed with his bat, and his return to the pavilion was greeted with howls of racist execration – Thumbia! Marakkalaya! And so on.
That could have been perhaps the most disgusting eruption of rank racism among cricket spectators anywhere in the world at any time. Yet, there was no public reaction reported in the newspapers. It may be that the exclusion of Karnain from the national team was not racially motivated. But the episode to which Kareem referred certainly attests to a maniacal anti-Muslim racism among some Sri Lankans.
My next exhibit is the contrasting treatment given to Marvan Attapattu and Navid Nawaz, both of whom had been identified as future batting stars while they were still youths. I recall Gamini Goonesena, who knew his cricket, writing of them in those terms. Attapattu began his national level cricketing career spectacularly with something like six ducks in a row. But the selectors persisted with him, quite rightly as it turned out because he established himself as a world class batsman and proceeded to captain the national team. Navid Nawaz, on the other hand, was tried out a few times at national level cricket, he failed, and was dropped for many long years. But as he was a consistently impressive performer in club cricket, he was again given his opportunity in the national team. He failed again, possibly because by then his nerve had been shattered. Was the contrasting treatment due to anti-Muslim prejudice? I don’t know, but most Muslims are convinced that it was so.
I will now refer to a rather amusing development. Dilshan, while still a fledgling in national level cricket and still uncertain of his tenure there, suddenly changed his first names from the Malay Tuan Mohammed to the Sinhalese Tillekeratne Mudaliyansage. He may have been taking on names from his presumably Sinhalese mother because – for entirely private reasons which had nothing to do with his cricketing career – he thought it fit to declare a partial Sinhalese identity. But my fellow Muslims were convinced that the intent behind the change was to secure his place in the national team. Some time later a Muslim who as a schoolboy had shown promise of becoming a national cricket star scored a dazzling century in Australia. An Australian reporter asked him whether he had hopes of playing for the SL national team. The reply of the young fellow was that to qualify he would first have to change his name. More recently another cricketer who has been hoping to qualify for the national team also changed his name to a Sinhalese one.
Many Muslims have been convinced that Ferveez Mahroof was subjected to discriminatory treatment during the last World Cup series. Another bowler, it was alleged, was suddenly and suspiciously being built up as a greatly improved bowler when that was not apparent at all, and was included in the World Cup Final in preference to Mahroof. It was even alleged, and came to be widely believed both by Muslims and non-Muslims, that a top politician had asked the SL captain, "Why do you want to include a Thumbia in the World Cup Final?"
The story was put out in pamphlet form by a well-known Muslim politician, who like other politicians was not famous for veracity, and distributed to Muslims on a large scale after Jumma prayers. I myself believe that the story was apocryphal, an Opposition stunt typical of our utterly unprincipled politics. Unfortunately the preferred bowler fared badly and came in for much criticism, including by Sunil Gavaskar. It came to be held that we could have won the World Cup if not for the racially prejudiced exclusion of Mahroof.
I come now to my final exhibit, Mahroof again, who has been included in the provisional squad for the ICC World T 20 series. Trevor Chesterfield wrote in the Island of March 8 as follows:- "His omissions from the Test and ODI squads in the past year have had the selectors claiming injury. What an interesting excuse. As he has been playing all season in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, which makes anyone who follows the game closely whether selectors are doing the same, or whether certain coaches have a difficulty with the lanky Wayamba all-rounder, so apt are they in giving faux reasons by failing to explain the extent of the mysterious injuries."
Every single Muslim to whom I have referred Chesterfield’s article has responded immediately with the remark that Mahroof has been the victim of racist discrimination. But I must emphasize that Chesterfield himself has not implied anything of the sort, and therefore he should not be drawn into any controversy arising from the present article.
I must make an important clarification before concluding this article. What looks like racist discrimination could well be susceptible to valid explanation on other grounds. We must remember that every society under the sun has injustices in it to varying degrees, and some fields of activity have more injustices than others. For some reason that I cannot fathom Sri Lanka cricket is a field in which some of our greatest virtuosos in injustice have flourished. Some of the victims were driven into premature retirement, causing incalculable loss to our cricket.
I mention the following names more or less at random:- Anura Ranasinghe, Brendon Kuruppu (now and in the past), Roy Dias, Sidath Wettimuny, Asanka Gurusinghe, Attapattu, Chamara Silva, Graeme Labrooy, and so on. But at this point I must caution against excluding racism as a possible explanation for injustice in addition to everything else. Too often Sri Lankans who are not racist at all are prone to make that exclusion.
In this article I have focused on discrimination against Muslims only in cricket, a tiny segment of our national life which however has as I have pointed out much significance for nation-building. On the broader picture of anti-Muslim discrimination I can do no better than refer to veteran Muslim journalist Latheef Farook’s book Nobody’s People published in 2009, an outspokenly courageous and detailed exposition of his subject.
As I cannot here go into details about it I will mention a few details from just one page, details of which the general public is mostly unaware:- non-Muslims in Negombo and elsewhere who were not affected by the tsunami were provided tsunami aid and also housing facilities while Muslim tsunami victims in and around Kalmunai were ignored; in August 2006 around 60,000 Muslims from Muttur were driven out totally empty handed because of the war, their plight being given only belated recognition; under various pretexts Muslim-owned lands in the East were arbitrarily acquired for colonization by Sinhalese brought in from the South.
What should be done? It seems obvious that the Government will go on vacillating and prevaricating over devolution with consequences that could be unpleasant, even dangerous, to Sri Lanka. It is a situation in which it becomes all the more important to show that the Government is willing to resort to the other method of dealing with ethnic problems: give what the international community can recognize as fair and equal treatment to the minorities. We have to work out what precisely has to be done by way of practical action. An evident lacuna to be filled is legislation to deal with the multifarious manifestations of racism – such as the yells of racist contempt and rage when Uvais Karnain failed at the crease.
We need grass roots institutions such as Race Relations Boards which in many countries have proved to be very effective in scotching racism. Minister Moragoda’s initiative over an Equal Opportunities Bill is most welcome. When it was originally mooted by G.L.Peiris in 2000, it was aborted through sickeningly rank racist opposition. At that time I wrote several articles about it, and predicted that it would be resurrected. I hope now that Minister Moragoda will get going with it, and ensure that we have a Bill that is not emasculated into total impotence.
18 Comments
I have to think twice before agreeing to what you have written. I honestly do not believe only Muslims are discriminated, then what about Mubarak? How many chances he was given? In this context, one can argue that there is discrimination against tamils too as only few Tamils have played for the national team (except for Muralidaran b'cas he is a national hero).
There are discriminations everywhere, whether you are a Sinhalese, Tamil or Muslim it doesn't matter. If you are not a favourite, things are different. As you have mentioned, number of Sinhalese crickers, (some are world class players) were dropped from the national team without a valid reason. You should look at the broader picture, then you can see the things differently.
bullshit.... dont u know our footboll teem memers. most of them are muslim. football fedaration is also run by so called sinhalees racist.
Dilhara Frnando is the World Cup misfit who cost us the Game. You are spot on Izeth
The author has jumbled up Tamil ethnic issue, political favoritism after Tsunami, selection of cricketers and the predicament of Muslim cricketers at national level. Obviously the title of this article is a misnomer.
Favoritism and discrimination in the cricket board selection committee are not confined to Muslim cricketers only. Even Sanath Jayasuriya was looked down as an outsider to Colombo elite as he hails from Matara and not very conversant in English initially. Chaminda Vass was not preferred for the captaincy. So we should not look at it through the perspective of racial discrimination against Muslims.
Having said that there seems to be a disturbing trend with the Malay Muslims cricketers changing their surnames that will appear on their shirts while playing for the country at international level. Tuan Mohamed Dilshan changed his surname to Tilakaratne and recently Suraj Mohamed changed his name to Suraj Randiv etc. Kumar Sangakara gave a non-committal response when this question was asked. These are petty issues but carry sentimental values.
It is a valid point that sports can be utilized as an instrument for the unity in diversity. When the national team consists of players from different ethnic groups whole country will unite to cheer them and the players will become good will ambassadors for the national unity. Sri Lankan Government and respective spots selection committees should look into this possibility of including capable players from all ethnic groups in the national teams.
What about the discrimination practiced against Tamils and Sinhalese in Port jobs at the hands of the late Mr Ashraff? Why did he only hire Muslims and ignore all the non-Muslims? What about the discrimination against Tamils in Muslim dominated areas in the east, where Tamils even fear to travel through Muslim dominated areas for fear of getting attacked, even if they are in a vehicle? Muslims in Sri Lanka, despite being a minority freely discrimated against the non-Muslims, calling them nasty names like "kaffir." Islam itself promotes dicrimination by requiring non-Muslims to pay a jiziya tax and non-Muslims are always placed subservient to Muslims. People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones
Discrimination is a wider phenomenon not limited to minorities. What makes minorities more vulnerable is that they lack in contacts and access to the powers that be. The muslim politicians have done nothing for the community other than for their close relatives and friends.
Mr.Hussain
Why are you talking so much about Dilshan changing his name to a Sinhala one.Dont you know that every year thousands of Sinhalese girls blinded by love convert to Islam and change thier names to Fathima,Aisha etc.This is what? discrimination of sinhalese girls by Muslims?
Dont talk duplicity Mr.Why not Muslim men convert to Buddhism and change thier names in the name of Love?The problem is in ur religion which is demanding the women to convert.
Pl.do not throw stones from glasshouses.
Another typical example of perceived discrimination by a minority. He conveniently forgets the chances given to Jehan Mubarak at the expense of other more deserving players. The main reason for non-inclusion of Muslims is that they were not talented enough. Dilshan and Suraj's name changes had nothing to do with cricket and both are half Sinhalese. If any Muslim plays good cricket the selectors would definitely include him.
Does anyone know of even a single piece of land owned by Muslims acquired for colonization by Sinhalese. Before making wild claims he should check his facts.
I think you have conveniently forgotten Jehan Mubarak who has been persisted with by the selectors despite not performing at the national level.
Regular writer to the Press Izeth Hussain appears to have made many unsuccessful attempts on behalf of Muslims, sometimes of the incumbent administration and many times unfair to Tamils. He does not appear to have succeeded very muchin any of these. Like in religion and language, when the pre-eminent position in a multi-cultural society is allocated to the majority even in Cricket the theory of a level-playing field or merit suffers.
It is unlikely one will see a Sathasivam again in the country although Murali, of recent Indian-origin. is an exception not forgetting Peterite Vinodan John - who had a spell as a quickie. Gone are the days when the Royal-Thomian, Josephian-Peterite or the Trinitian teams produced national stars in cricket from the Tamil community. Even without Hussain's intervention, Muslims had cause for complaint in their youth not being in the national team although, in fairness, one must say this is more the rare exception than the rule.
By the way, there is no question from the Tamil side of a Tuan Dilshan mogrification to Tilakawardena - to gain SL colours. But remove the racial-religious bigotry and in young TM Dilshan you have a worthy successor to Sanath Jayasuriya. My friends - seasoned men of Cricket say - there is much time for Dilshan to show his remarkable potential with the bat. The country must have lost many a fine sports talent in the ugly altar of majoritarian-racialism.
This cheering for Pakistan when they play Sri Lanka here is a sensitive matter and is, naturally, found irksome. This is an indication of insecurity from a minority community under mental siege and goes beyond the realm of sports - that needs to be understood in perspective and corrected. The less said of Hussains attempts in defence of the Tamil community and his own pronouncements on power-sharing - the better. Tamils have many within their own community to espouse their case.
ISS
The writer of this article to put it politely is talking a lot of ‘codswallop’. National cricketers in Sri Lanka are chosen on merit and on performance. The selectors at times choose and drop national cricketers for a variety of reasons and racial stereotyping is certainly not one of them. The colourful racial kaleidoscope of Sri Lanka is often displayed in its cricket team, Sinhalese, Tamils, Malays, Moors and Burghers are represented from time to time based on performance and merit.
The name change saga that is expressed by the writer is a personal choice. Both the cricketers mentioned as far as I understand it have Sinhalese mothers and hence it is their choice to change their names to whatever they fancy. I have Tamil friends who have Sinhalese surnames, Sinhalese friends who have sonorous Portuguese and Burgher names and Burgher friends whose mothers are Tamils, Sinhalese or Malays. Inter marriage between the races and communities have always been the hallmark of Sri Lankan society at large. There are communities who are conservative on this issue due to racial and religious reasons, but by large the majority Sri Lankans are a liberal lot.
What I whole heartedly agree with the author is the non-discriminatory legislation that is long overdue in a complex society such as Sri Lanka. This legislation should be given teeth that politicians cannot thwart or be utilised by them for political gain.
Devolution for a small country like Sri Lanka is counter-productive as within a decade or so ‘bullet trains’ will make distance between the provinces miniscule and social intercourse between the communities will then be ‘par for the course’ and that will benefit all the communities at large. Also do remember the 13th amendment was forced on Sri Lanka by India, an external power that was only interested in its geo-political ambitions. This was the very reason it had nurtured the LTTE a decade previously. Unfortunately for India the LTTE turned on its benefactors and the rest is history.
I agree with those who commented that the name change is a personal choice.
Unfortunatly, the name change is an INDICATOR of what is going on. It is a well known fact that the players' only reason for name change was Getting into the national team.
I have personally spoken to Dilshan who said he was treated cheaply in the cricket circle until he changed his name.
Playing the victim card seems to be a favourite pastime of certain minority writers. I'm not Muslim but I think Sri Lankan Muslims have far more rights to practice their religion and culture than ANY non-Muslim has in ANY Muslim majority country. Sri Lanka has even gone to the extent of banning all pork based medicides to satisfy 7% of the population even though the costs are higher. Then there is the government providing free cloth to Muslim female students to wear a hijab if they so wish. Look at how Muslim ministers are blatantly discriminating against non-Muslims when it comes to jobs and Mr Hussein's writings ring hollow. Recently a Muslim minister from the east was responsible for stopping the construction of a Hindu temple which was being built by Tamils returning to their ancestral village. The Tamils had sold much of their land after being attacked by Muslim mobs and had returned after many years. So what I am saying is that Izeth Hussein should take a look at the racism and discrimination practiced by his own community before pointing fingers at others and making sweeping claims which have no basis in fact.
Cricket in Sri Lanka is more complex than national politics. Former President of the Cricket Board, the late Gamini Dissanayake famously, said that he prefers national politics to that of politics in cricket because of the complexities involved and remeber, ethnicity was not one of them. As a person involved in cricket in the past, may I put down the following.
Before we gained Test status and for a few years after that (may be a decade or so) the major and the overwhelming criterion set by the selectors was that cricketers have to represent a Colombo 7 club to play for sri lanka. Others in and around Colombo had no chance. Karnain played for NCC, a Colombo 7 club. He was undoubetdly dropped due to a lack of form and also due to a spat he had with the then all powerful Abu Fuard. Thereafter he moved on to Moors SC and with it lost any chance of making a comeback.
Maharoof plays for NCC and always fancies his chances of playing for Sri Lanka. He was definitely injured during the last year and did not play for his club during a specific space of time. If you do a quick check on the Cricinfo website it is clear that he has not played for his club in most matches due to injury. Mr. Chesterfield has an axe to grind with the establishment and he is known to twist facts to suit his arguments. Not for nothing is he called Jesterfield. So Mr. Izzeth Hussain should not take him seriously.
There was a time when one of the Colombo 7 clubs, i. e., Bloomfield C &AC was discriminated against. Players representing that club had no chance of playing for SL although they still had a better chance than any of the outstation club cricketer. A case in opoint was Vinothan John. He was a far better fast bowler than any of the pacemen playing at his time. However due to him representing Bloomfield he was not selected or he was ignored. Had he played for any other team in Colombo 7 he would have played for Sri Lanka more often than actually he did.
About outstation club cricketers at the time who was cold shouldered was Bernard Perera of Kandy SC. He was so good but was not given a chance and then he joined the rebels to South Africa.
Navid Nawaz played for Bloomfield when that club was out of favour with the selectors. Later he joined NCC but it was too late, as other more promising cricketers had come into the scene.
TM Dilshan may have perceived that he was not getting a permanent slot due to his Muslim name. However it is to be borne in mind that he represented SL before he changed his name. That was a time when he was not playing for a club in Colombo. Later he moved onto Bloomfield and changed his name as well. From all information it may be that he strongly believed that he was able to cement his place due to his change of name. It may be his belief. However if he does not perform he cannot continue to be in the team. The case of Suraj Randiv is connected with Dilshan. Suraj played for SSC, which was a passport to the national team, after leaving school. Then he lost his bowling action and joined NCC and later Bloomfield where Dilshan is playing. May be Dilshan had a hand in Suraj changing his name.
Case of Jehan Mubarak, a player from CCC, has been raised by the comments. He was given an awful lot of chances but has not been able to grab them.
So in short, there is no ethnic discrimination in cricket. If you play for the right club then your chances are better. Colombo 7 influence has waned greatly due to the system in place now.
Dear All,
I think there are few things needs to be understood.
A. We all must admit that in Sri Lanka the way it happens is that the most preference will be given to the 1st Citizen and then his immediate kith and kin, distant relatives, friends and followers - THATS ONE LINE OF HOW THINGS HAPPEN
B. Then, if you are against the 1st citizen, unless you are powerful enough to resist - you will be treated the worst, regardless how Sinhalese or Sri Lankan you are e.g. Sarath Fonseka and his immediate family members, distant relatives and followers
C. All others are subjected to one of the following
- Merit - if you find the power is in the hands of people who are honourable or you are too good to be discriminated against e.g. Muthiah Muralidaran, Sanath Jayasuriya, Susanthika
- How closely you resemble the person who has power - Same race, same college, same cast, similar family backgrounds etc
- Utterly a random phenomena - you happen to be in the right place at the right time (and certainly you were not the right person)
- political push
- Friendship
- Numerous other factors
Sri Lanka is a country where we a taught to discriminate / distinguish ourselves from others from a young age and therefore we have become very suspicious of people who don't resemble us very closely
Finally I think the author is describing a part of the elephant, may be the bushy end of the tail and forgotten that the elephant has other parts. Yet, it shows how we project ourselves to each other generally and how much enmity there is, in the country. This situation could be easily exploited by a foreign intelligence service to destabilize the country as it happened for the last several years.
What we need as Sri Lankans is a sense of understanding about each other (should be taught in schools) and see the positive side of each others cultures, so we can build a glorious land, instead of screwing one another.
Is there discrimination even in sports, is the right question. The answer is a resounding, 'Yes'.
The fabric of society in Sri Lanka is so malignantly contorted discrimination percolates, permeates and pervades at every level. Sports is no exception.
Almost five decades ago, a former captain and later chairman of the Team selection committee of British Cricket was present in the island on a Coaching assignment. Having toured Central, South, North of the island in addition to being all over Colombo, he sportingly reported, to the media, that the best talent hailed from the North. The commotion that erupted following his impartial assessment was uneasy display of our Sri Lanka colours.
The Coach was Clive Inman, and the talent was M. Theivendra.
Everyone knows of the exit of Michael Tissera and the entry of Anura Tennekoon.
Malinda Seneviratne has a nice retort to Izeth Hussein's article:
"Izeth mentions some cricketers who had to ‘retire hurt’ like Anura Ranasinghe, Brendon Kuruppu (now and in the past), Roy Dias, Sidath Wettimuny, Asanka Gurusinghe, Attapattu, Chamara Silva and Graeme Labrooy. He didn’t mention those who didn’t make it to the team because they were in the wrong club or went to the wrong school.
He doesn’t mention the fact that those who hadn’t gone to schools like Royal, S. Thomas’, Trinity, St. Peter’s and St. Joseph’s didn’t have any chance of making it until very recently.
He doesn’t explain how there have been times when our soccer teams were chock-full of Muslims as though subscribing to the Islamic faith gave some kind of skill-edge to individuals. Izeth doesn’t explain the play of ‘racism’ in such phenomenon. Why not?"
As a foiromerMuslim I think its amazing that this guy is complaining about Musildiscrimination when every Islamic country in teh world discriminates against non-Muslims. saudia aarabia the mulsim "holy" land does not allow the worship of any other religion tahn Islam. Muhammad himself attacked non-muslims and even encouraged the murder of 10 year old boy who moved away from Islam and molested a 6-year old slave girl form a non-muslim family. This guy who inspire dhomor killings and child molestation claimed to be God's prophet