Warning over public comments: Explanation sought from police

By Shamindra Ferdinando

The Human Rights Commission has asked police headquarters not to interfere with people’s freedom of expression.

HRC Chairperson retired Supreme Court Justice Rohini Marasinghe has sought an explanation from Police Spokesperson SSP Nihal Thalduwa as regards a recent warning issued by him.

A senior spokesperson for the HRC yesterday (11) told The Island that justice Marasinghe called Attorney-at-Law Thalduwa regarding a statement attributed to him in the media.

Following a recent incident reported from Mirihana, where some people allegedly said something demeaning about President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, SSP Thalduwa warned that legal action would be taken against those who defamed the President via social media platforms or other media.

The HRC spokesperson said that SSP assured justice Marasinghe that the media had misinterpreted his statement. “We received an assurance from the Police Spokesperson that he would furnish an affidavit soon stating their stand. SSP Thalduwa denied issuing a warning to the public over the Mirihana incident.”

The HRC intervened after the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) had recorded a statement from a woman Asha Dilrukshi Perera who had shared a Facebook post. She later told the media: “They (the CID) told me that the post could pose a threat to the President’s life. It was not a post created by me. It was just one I had shared about somebody hooting at the President. They asked whether I had shared it responsibly. They copied everything on my phone and kept my phone with them for about two hours.”

HRC spokesperson explained that the police shouldn’t hastily issue statements. Over the past several weeks, politicians had commented on various incidents where politicians were hooted at, the official said. Therefore, the police appeared to have intervened to rein in social media users, the official said.

The official noted that the ongoing shortage of essential items and runaway cost of living resulted in an explosion of social media posts.