Eran: Online Safety Bill will pave way for dictatorship

The main opposition SJB says that the Online Safety Bill, scheduled to be taken for debate in Parliament today, and tomorrow, will become a major blow to the people’s freedom of speech, if it becomes the law.

Addressing the media at the Opposition Leader’s office in Colombo, SJB MP Eran Wickremeratne said that the government had stated that the protection of the rights of women and children on social media platforms as one of the objectives of the proposed Bill. “However, the Bill does not even contain the words women and children. If it becomes law, it will enable the police, and other authorities, to take over the mobile phones of journalists and social media activists without a court order. This is paving the way for a dictatorship,” the MP said.

The Bill contained anti-democratic features, Wickremeratne said. “This will curb the freedom of the people. It is going to be passed as a criminal law. The Bill proposes the setting up of a Commission which would be under the direct control of the President. This Commission is going to be vested with many powers that had been hitherto enjoyed by the courts of law. This Bill would certainly make the government more authoritarian and that would alone be a threat to people’s rights. We oppose this Bill in Parliament and call on the people to line up with us to defeat this undemocratic move.”