Sri Lankans wait to give swab samples to test for COVID-19 outside a hospital as a health official walks past in Minuwangoda, Sri Lanka. (AP)
Amid mounting criticism, Sri Lanka has revised a mandatory order to cremate the bodies of COVID victims, which denied minority communities their religious rights.
- PTI Colombo
- Last Updated:February 27, 2021, 20:44 IST
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Sri Lanka’s decision to end forced cremations and allow the burial of those who succumbed to COVID-19 will take some time to be implemented as the necessary guidelines have not been issued so far, a top health official said on Saturday. Amid mounting international criticism, Sri Lanka has revised a controversial mandatory order to cremate the bodies of COVID-19 victims, which denied minority communities, including Muslims, their religious rights.
The government on Thursday revised a gazette notification issued in April last year. The new notification allowed both burials and cremations. For 10 months, the Muslim and…