PTA Amendment Bill tabled in Parliament

10 Feb, 2022

The Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) Amendment Bill was tabled in Parliament by Foreign Minister, Professor G.L Peiris today.

The?Bill proposes a number of changes to the existing laws under the PTA which has drawn wide international criticism.

Professor G.L Peiris said that the Bill will be debated in Parliament and can also be challenged in court.

Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian M.A Sumanthiran asked why the Bill has been tabled when the Government had said earlier that it will replace the PTA with a new Counter Terrorism Act.

The EU had yesterday welcomed the submission by the Government of Sri Lanka of amendments to the PTA.

However, the EU noted that important elements had not been included in the Amendment Bill which was gazetted.

In a joint statement issued with the EU, Sri Lanka took note of the views expressed by the EU to take further steps to make the PTA fully compliant with international norms. (Colombo Gazette)

Recommended For You

Modi and Gota discuss reconciliation, ethnic harmony in Sri Lanka

Visiting Sri Lankan President Gotayaba Rajapaksa and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, today discussed wide ranging issues, including reconciliation and ethnic harmony in Sri Lanka. The talks took place as Rajapaksa undertook his first official overseas visit as Head of State after being elected President. Rajapaksa was accorded a grand welcome at Hyderabad House following which he engaged in bilateral talks with Prime Minister Modi. At the talks India offered Sri Lanka 450 million US doll

29 Nov, 2019

Maldives ex-president Yameen sentenced to five years in prison

Former Maldives President Abdulla Yameen has been found guilty of laundering over US$1 million?deposited to his bank account by a company that was used to channel resort acquisition fees?stolen during his administration, the Maldives Independent reported. While in office, Yameen invested the money despite reasonable grounds to suspect that it was ill-gotten and?violated an agreement signed with the Anti-Corruption Commission to hold the US$1 million in an escrow account,?a five-judge panel rule

28 Nov, 2019

Switzerland slams kidnapping of its employee in Colombo

Switzerland has slammed the kidnapping of one of its employees in Colombo and has summoned the Sri Lankan Ambassador to Switzerland to the Foreign Ministry in Bern to discuss the incident. A local employee of the Swiss Embassy in Sri Lanka had been temporarily kidnapped and threatened by unknown assailants in what the Foreign Ministry has called was a ?serious and unacceptable attack?. According to reports the woman was kidnapped on Monday then held and questioned for two hours before being re

27 Nov, 2019

Colombo Gazette is a leading news and entertainment website, covering stories related to Sri Lanka. The content consists of text based news, photos and videos and is linked to social media websites including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, to provide a wider coverage for its stories.