Sri Lanka’s ‘chilling’ online content law lambasted as tool to silence government critics

First proposed in September last year, the Online Safety Bill that was passed by the Sri Lankan parliament on Wednesday has drawn criticism from human rights groups and tech giants, who fear its rushed implementation will stifle freedom of expression.

Before the parliamentary vote, the government amended the draft legislation after the Supreme Court found 31 of the 57 clauses to be unconstitutional, following 45 petitions filed in the country’s apex court challenging the bill.

Of 225 parliamentarians who attended the session, 108 voted in favour of the controversial legislation while 62 voted against following a two-day debate, as the government pushed for a swift approval of the bill.

A five-member Online Safety Council is to be established under the law, with the power to penalise offenders for online safety violations. This includes up to 500,000 Sri Lankan rupees (US$1,560) in fines or a maximum of five years in jail for those who post material deemed by the council as illegal. The council will also hold social media giants such as Google, Facebook and X liable for such content posted on their platforms.

The approved legislation remains unavailable for public scrutiny. Many rights groups are concerned about the vaguely worded definitions of offences under the new law, the wide powers given to the regulatory body, and limited consultations over the matter.

Speaking to This Week In Asia, Hana Ibrahim, secretary of the Free Media Movement of Sri Lanka argued the law could be weaponised to take action against those posting content against the government.

“[This law could be used] to sort of instil a sense of fear in the others, [the government’s] ultimate aim is self-censorship,” Ibrahim said.

The legislation was approved ahead