Ina desperate attempt to prevent protest campaigns and public uprising against the rising cost of living plus power cuts , cooking gas shortage fuel scarcity,rising food inflation, and many more burning issues in the country, the government has imposed a full day curfew today Sunday 03
In addition social media platform restrictions are reported to have been enforced by the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission.
The main aim of the barricading of social media platforms was to prevent calling unknown groups to gather the people in protest demonstrations country wide, official sources said.
There are several reports that social media users are facing difficulties in using platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WhatsApp and YouTube in Sri Lanka.
Meanwhile the Director General of the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) says that service providers have been advised to temporarily restrict access to social media websites, on the request of the Ministry of Defence.
NetBlocks, a watchdog organization that monitors cybersecurity and the governance of the Internet, had confirmed the restriction of multiple social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Viber and YouTube in Sri Lanka after midnight on Saturday.
The watchdog reported that real-time network data collected from over 100 vantage points across Sri Lanka show the restrictions coming into effect across multiple providers from midnight.
Metrics corroborate user reports of service unavailability across the country, showing that all of Sri Lanka’s major network operators including Dialog, Sri Lanka Telecom, Mobitel, Hutch are covered by the measure.
Fully or partially impacted social media and messaging platforms include Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, WhatsApp, Viber, Telegram, and Facebook Messenger.
The government of Sri Lank has declared a state of emergency and has imposed a 36-hour curfew island wide until Monday morning (04).
The President has also issued a Gazette Extraordinary, prohibiting people from being on any public road, park, recreation or other grounds, railways, seashores and other such public places during the curfew period.
The Ministry of Public Security said that investigations are underway to identify the members of the organized group that was involved in the Mirihana protest on Thursday (31) night.
Public Security Minister Rear Admiral (Retd) Dr. Sarath Weerasekara said that protesting is a democratic right of the people, however, that does not mean that one can set vehicles on fire and cause damage to property.
He said that those responsible for such incidents will be identified and will be brought before the law.
“We are aware that the people are facing a crisis with regard to gas, fuel, electricity etc. Such acts will not solve those crises,” he said, adding that it is disturbing to see people wait in line for days and weeks for those essentials.
Public Security Minister Rear Admiral (Retd) Dr. Sarath Weerasekara told News 1st that the unruly acts were committed by a group of extremists, and investigations are underway to determine if it involves religious extremism or terrorism
