Murali calls for Sri Lankan peace

By Frances Harrison
BBC correspondent in Colombo

Murali is raising money to fight malnutrition

Sri Lanka's most famous cricketer, Muttiah Muralitharan, has made a rare appeal to his countrymen to put ethnic differences behind them and move on.

Speaking as a goodwill ambassador for the UN World Food Programme, Murali, as he is known, said Sri Lanka needed peace so things could "come right".

Muralitharan, a Tamil, said people should follow the example of the cricketers, who had "no differences".

However, the spin bowler repeated that he would not tour Australia next week.

He has refused to travel following criticism of his bowling action, including that from Australian Prime Minister John Howard, who called him "a chucker".

Ethnic bridge

Muralitharan told journalists on Friday that his divided country should learn from its national cricket team.

There are no differences [in the cricket team]. So if we can be like that, I ask the question why can't the people be like that? Muttiah Muralitharan

He said it had bridged ethnic differences, with most of his fans coming from the majority Sinhala community even though he was Tamil.

"Definitely we in this country need peace. Then other things will come right for this country," he said.

"There is no difference between Tamil or Muslims or Sinhalese in the cricket team because we play for the country and we want to win always."

Arguably the world's leading spin bowler, Muralitharan is a national hero and has been chosen to raise money to fight malnutrition in partnership with the World Food Programme.

He will begin with a walk in the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo, on Sunday to raise money for a school food programme that will focus on the country's conflict areas.

Then he is expected to visit children affected by the civil war, probably inside territory controlled by the Tamil Tigers.

Muralitharan's message that Sri Lankans should forget about the past seemed to apply to his critics in Australia too.

He said he had no hatred towards Australians and would tour the country in the future.

The controversy surrounding Muralitharan's bowling concerns his "doosra" delivery - a variation of his leg-break - which has been banned by the International Cricket Council, to the dismay of his Sri Lankan supporters.