Sri Lanka

The Free Media Movement said restricting freedom of speech is the death knell of democracy.

Journalist Parami Nilepthi Ranasinghe was ordered to stop reporting for Sri Lanka’s national television Rupavahini, after the president’s office informed the network that she criticized the government on her Facebook account.

The report deplored the actions of Sri Lanka authorities for continuing to target civil society groups, including human rights defenders and the families of victims of past violations who are campaigning for justice.

The house of Sri Lankan journalist Chamuditha Samarawickrama was attacked by unidentified armed men on 14 February. Samarawickrama has recently tackled corruption in the government on his talk show.

A new report from Human Rights Watch documents how the Sri Lankan government is using the discredited Prevention of Terrorism Act against the minority Tamil and Muslim communities, and to suppress civil society groups.

Azath Salley was arrested in March 2021 and was detained without bail, as he was charged under Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Terrorism Act. He was accused of making statements that harm ethnic and religious harmony during a media briefing.

Sri Lanka media groups condemned members of the army who attacked a journalist while covering a Tamil tribute in Mullaitivu.

An elected local politician was removed from his position after a court nullified his election victory based on information that he bribed voters. The information was obtained through the Right to Information Act. The court ruling was hailed as a landmark victory for advocates of the Right to Information.

Free Media Movement reminded Sri Lanka authorities that the “suppression of protests demanding solutions to issues affecting the people and the arrest of activists who lead them is a violation of the freedom of speech and expression.”

The Free Media Movement said pressuring journalist Sajeeva Wijeweera to disclose his sources is a violation of the Right to Information Act and a threat to media freedom.

Poet Ahnaf Jazeem was arrested on 16 May 2020 under Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Terrorism Act for publishing a Tamil-language poetry anthology which authorities said promote extremism.

Free Media Movement said the bill intended to curb false and misleading online posts could be detrimental to freedom of expression. It was approved by the Cabinet on 20 April.

Sri Lanka’s Media Organisations Collective said the recent statement by President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa about the media gave “a dangerous signal of an ominous threat to the freedom of media and expression” in the country.

The Free Media Movement said the 1973 law that created the Sri Lanka Press Council has to be repealed for containing provisions that are detrimental to media freedom.

The Free Media Movement is concerned that internet users commenting about the pandemic have been questioned and detained by security forces.

The Free Media Movement said the decision of the BBC to close down the five-minute ‘Sandeshaya’ radio program would deprive people of information at a time when there is an escalation in human rights attacks in Sri Lanka.