COLOMBO (News 1st): A communique has been issued by the Director General of the Government Information Department specifying several rules and regulations and statements owing to the prevailing situation in the country.

EMERGENCY (MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS AND POWERS) Regulation No 01 of 2019

Regulation 32

‘No person shall, by word of mouth or by any other means whatsoever, communicate, disseminate or spread any rumor or false statement which is likely to cause public alarm or public disorder. ‘Any person acting in contravention of the above regulation is liable to be punished on conviction after trial before a High Court or a
Magistrates’ Court with an imprisonment of not less than three (03) months and not exceeding five (05) years and a fine.

INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS (ICCPR) Act No 56 of 2017

Section 03(1):

‘No person shall propagate war or advocate national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence’: Any contravention of the above entails a punishment, on conviction after a trial before a High Court to a rigorous imprisonment not exceeding ten (10) years.

PREVENTION OF TERRORISM (TEMPORARY PROVISIONS) ACT NO 48 of 1979 

Section 02(1) (h):

‘Any person who by words either spoken or intended to be read or by signs or by visible representations or otherwise causes or intends to cause commission of acts of violence or religious, racial or communal disharmony or feeling of ill-will or hostility between different communities or racial or religious groups’ shall be guilty of an offence and on conviction after trial before a High Court be liable to a term of imprisonment not less than five (05) years
and not exceeding twenty (20) years.

Hence the public are informed that any act which tantamounts to an offense as stated above would result in the perpetrators being prosecuted.

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