Why dem accuse dis doctor say e make thousands of women barren?

E get tablet wey fit make pesin sterile - barren? Sometin like gel for women pant, maybe?

Abi you don ever hear of doctor wey dey codedly make women barren during Caesarean session?

All dis na conspiracy theory wey dey circulate among some Buddha worshipers wey dey against Muslims for Sri Lanka.

Tori be say di kontri Muslim minority dey codedly try increase dia population by making women from di Buddhist community barren.

One man wey be doctor from di town of Kurunegala, na di target of one kain yeye accuse.

"I be Muslim, and dem accuse me say I bin secretly make 4,000 Buddhist women women barren," Mohamed Shafi, wey be surgeon, tell BBC.

Dem bin lie on to Dr Shafi head say im dey compress di womb of im Buddhist patients wit one instrument during Caesarean sections, and dis dey prevent dem from getting more pikin.

Im chop arrest on 24 May 2019 and dem charge am under terrorism laws.

"Dem put me for cell wit criminals. I come tink am, why dem dey do dis to me? I need to survive for my wife and my children," Dr Shafi say.

Di papa of three children spend 60 days for cell.

For July 2019, court give am bail, but dem give am compulsory leave sake of di investigations.

Four years afta, Sri Lanka Ministry of Health give am back im work for May 2023 sake of say dem no find any evidence to support di accuse.

Easter Sunday bombing

Buddha worshipers na about 70% of Sri Lanka population of 22 million, Muslims about 10%. Dem also get Hindus (around 12%) and Christians (7%).

Before di accusations, Dr Shafi bin dey treat patients from all di religious communities.

But on 21 April 2019 - Easter Sunday – several bomb target churches and tourist hotels, killing more dan 250 pipo.

Di atrocity change Shafi life forever.

One group of radical extremists wey get connection to Islamic State (IS) group na dem do di bombing, one of di worst attack for di kontri since im civil war against Tamil Tiger separatists end for 2009.

Di bombing cause pipo to hate Muslims for Sri Lanka.

As revenge, mosques, houses, and Muslim shops, dem set dem on fire, and pipo even kill one Muslim man.

False accusation

On 23 May 2019, one month afta di Easter Sunday bombings, mainstream tori pipo 'Divaina' publish for dia front-page one tori say "Thawheed Jamath doctor don make 4,000 Sinhalese Buddhist mothers barren.

Details show proof of investigations wey dem do to arrest di doctor."

National Thawheed Jamath na one of di two local Islamic groups wey dem bin blame for di Easter Sunday attacks.

Di newspaper no provide any sources to support di accuse or reveal Dr Shafi identity, but not long afta, di accusations of making Buddhist women barren wey implicate Shafi wit im foto and im location show for Facebook.

"Dat na di first time dem publicly link me to di accuse," im tell BBC.

Dr Shafi say, im, di ward consultant, and fellow senior house officers bin visit di director of Kurunegala Teaching Hospital, Dr Sarath Weerabandara, to report di false accuse against am on social media and to let am know say im worry say dem fit threaten im life.

However, Dr Weerabandara reply say im only fit to address matas inside di hospital and not outside.

Two days later, dem arrest Dr Shafi.

"Dem carry me go police without warrant and put me for prison to avoid public disturbance," im tok.

'Toxic media'

Di mata catch fire wen television channels pick up di tori, and di lie lie accuse go viral for social media.

"Dem frame me. Dem call me terrorist for public. Toxic television channels and fake news on social media bin basically destroy my life," Dr Shafi tok.

Buddhist monks begin protest outside di hospital wia Dr Shafi wife, Fathima Imara, bin dey also work.

"My wife receive death threats. She come dey fear for our children life," Dr Shafi tok, adding say she bin also dey close to losing her job.

"My eldest daughter bin dey prepare for her exams and she bin wan go school. But we bin no fit send her becos pipo bin dey vex for us. She come dey depressed - we get to find new school for our pikin dem," im add.

Afta im arrest, im wife and children move go Colombo. Since den, im children don go three different schools.

"My wife and children get to run hide from one place to anoda. And dem bin no get money cause dem freeze my accounts," Dr Shafi tok.

Although around 800 women give statements about Mohamed Shafi – wey di hospital bin refer to as "complain" - on 27 June 2019, Sri Lanka Criminal Investigation Department (CID) inform court say e no get any evidence wey dem find against Dr Shafi about any secret barren operation.

Add to dat one, report from different security and intelligence agency for Sri Lanka, including di State Intelligence Service, say dem no find any evidence wey link Shafi to any terrorist activities.

Election campaign

Afta di Easter Sunday bombings, di former defence chief during war, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, di broda of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, say im go run for presidential election and go stop di spread of Islamist extremism.

Hate for Muslim enta climax during run-up to dis election, wey dem do for November 2019.

"Racism na addiction. Unfortunately, pipo wey be racist addicts dey tok about am wit pride," Dr Shafi tok.

"Sri Lankan politicians turn me to devil. You no fit imagine di trauma."

'Sterilisation tablet and gel'

Di conspiracy theory say sterilisation - (to make di women barren) na weapon wey Muslims dey use take over Sri Lanka don happun on oda occasions too.

For 2018, one Muslim restaurant owner chop accuse say im dey add 'sterilisation pills' to food, to target Buddhist customers.

Dis one cause Buddhist pipo to violently attack di restaurant plus shops and hotels wey belong to Muslim for Ampara, east of Sri Lanka.

After Shafi arrest, one popular Buddhist monk, Warakagoda Sri Gnanarathana, publicly support make dem stone Muslims and ask Buddhists make dem no buy from Muslim stores and food.

Anoda claim be say Muslims dey put so-called 'sterilisation gel' for underwear for Buddhist women.

As di rumour spread on social media, die hard Buddhist ask dia pipo make dem no buy tins from Muslim shops and dem even attack some of dia pipo wey go dia to buy tins.

Afta di violence for Ampara, di tin force UN to give statement say weda sterilisation pills abi gel, notin like dat dey exist.

Media ethics

Sri Lanka Young Journalists Association (SLYJA) bin dey among di group wey raise dia voice against di kain reports wey local newspapers, television channels and websites bin dey do.

According to chairman of SLYJA, Tharindu Jayawardena, di media bin no publish many facts about di mata during dat time.

BBC speak to different local tori pipo wey bin torchlight di mata wey "cover both sides of di story" wey dem no publish, dem say because editors bin dey fear say "e go provoke di readers and affect di newspaper market".

Jayawardena say di hate campaign against Dr Shafi on mainstream and social media bin lead directly to order wey Buddhist monks give to stone Muslims to death. And di whole tin bin no get any base.

"We find out say among di women wey give statements about Dr Shafi, only 168 bin struggle to carry belle. Odas come out afta dem hear di news. Dem bin just wan do check up. We get list of all di complain and don comfam say nearly 120 bin born pikin afta dem arrest Dr Shafi," im add.

Prove of innocence

Without evidence to support di accuse against am, Dr Shafi resume im work for Kurunegala Teaching Hospital for May 2023.

Im collect back all im three years salary of about 2.7 million rupees ($8,750) - Dr Shafi donate di arrears to di Health Ministry to buy medicines.

Many Sri Lanka doctors dey leave di kontri to search for beta life as di kontri dey face economic crisis, but Dr Shafi dey determine to remain and continue to work for di hospital wia dem falsely accuse am.

"My family members tell me make I no stay," im tok, "but I know say di only way to prove say I dey innocent na to go back to di same hospital and work for di same position."