Singer Akon Wednesday said he was disheartened Sri Lanka planned to deny him a visa to perform on the Indian Ocean island nation, after Buddhists angered by a video he appeared in staged a violent protest. Akon's international booking agents, American Talent Agency, said in a statement they had postponed the show until the safety of both the performers and fans could be guaranteed, but were working to secure a new date. “I was not aware that the statue was even on the set of the video until now. I would never set out to offend or desecrate anyone's religion or religious beliefs,” Akon said in a statement. “I myself am a spiritual man, so I can understand why they are offended, but violence is never the answer and I am disheartened,” Akon said. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka's tourism minister said Thursday that the country had lost a “priceless” promotional opportunity by banning the US star Akon from performing at a concert in Colombo following protests from Buddhist monks. “We were expecting about 5,000 to 6,000 tourist from India, Maldives and Malaysia to watch the show. The mileage we would have got would have been priceless,” Achala Jagoda told reporters in Colombo.
