10 November 2020 03:20 pm
The government will only take a decision to bury Muslim citizens who died due to Covid-19 disease on the advice of a committee appointed by the Ministry of Health, Minister of Environment Mahinda Amaraweera said.
Responding to questions on whether the government has taken a decision to bury Muslims who died due to Covid 19 disease, the Minister said the government would only agree to act on the recommendation given by the health sector.
He said the government will give its approval most likely today.
“The last rites of people who die of Covid-19 disease are not based on race or religion. The decision will only be taken on the advice of a committee appointed by the Ministry of Health,” he said.
The Minister said that the government would not oppose the recommendation to bury Covid-19 victims on the instructions of the health authorities.
“When burying the bodies of those who died due to Covid 19, a dry land was selected to prevent the germs from the corpses seeping into ground water” he added.
The Minister said that Minister of Health Pavithra Wanniarachchi had clarified the facts at the recent Cabinet meeting which has been approved by many countries in the world.
Ceylon Thwaheed Jamaath (CTJ) yesterday thanked President Gotabaya Rajapaksa for permitting the burial of deceased COVID-19 victims of Islamic faith.