Revised Anti-Terrorism Act to be gazetted within next fortnight – Minister

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ali Sabri PC,at a press conference convened at the Presidential Media Centre on Wednesday (13) under the theme of ‘A Collective Path towards a Stable Nation’  officially announced that the revised Anti-Terrorism Act will be gazetted within the next fortnight. . This significant legislative development has been amended in alignment with established international standards to ensure that it does not compromise the national security of the nation.

On becoming law, the Anti-Terrorism Act will replace the Prevention of Terrorism Act which was introduced in 1979 as a temporary measure but has been in force until this day due to the prolonged and escalating security challenges faced by our country.

Under the provisions of the new Act, there are several key safeguards and procedural requirements in place to protect the rights of individuals detained under suspicion of terrorism:

• Individuals can be detained and interrogated for a maximum period of 60 days without requiring prior approval from a magistrate. However, they can only be held in authorized detention centres.
• After the arrest of an individual, they must be brought before a magistrate within 48 hours.
• Prosecution cannot be solely based on confessions obtained from the detained individuals. Any confession used for prosecution must adhere to the common law requirement, which typically means that it should be made before a magistrate in accordance with established legal procedures.
• Individuals arrested under the Prevention of Terrorism Act have the opportunity to seek bail after one year of detention, providing them with a legal recourse to challenge their continued detention. In cases where individuals are detained for more than one year, such extended detention must be authorized by a magistrate, adding an additional layer of judicial oversight.

Citizens of Sri Lanka  will retain the right to challenge its provisions of the Anti–Terrorism Act and, if deemed necessary, seek legal redress by approaching the Supreme Court within a period of one week from its publication.

(PMD)