BASL condemns incidents that cause disharmony in SL

Bar Association

The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) has requested the government to take necessary action against hate speech and incitement of violence based on racial and religious difference among communities in the country.

Issuing a statement BASL President U. R. de Silva said that the Association condemns all incidents that cause disharmony among the ethnic communities in the country.

The Association stated that the government must decisively act against all parties who support hatred that constitute incitement to discrimination, hostility and violence.“we had placed the following provisions of the law before the public to draw their attention to the matter,” he said.

According to Article 12 (1) of the Constitution, every person has the equality and equal protection of the law. Therefore, it is the duty of the government to take effective measures to guarantee the safety and security of all people and their properties including businesses, irrespective of their race or religion.

Section 291A and 291B of the Penal Code also identified several offences which need to addressed in order to arrest hate speech and to protect places of religious worship and religious sensitivities of people.

Furthermore, the BASL had stated that the ICCPR Act (International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Act No. 56 of 2007) also contains penal provisions to deal with incitement violence, racial and religious hatred.