Bill would allow government to gag media that offends "public expectations against the public."
from World Socialist Web SIte
"Sri Lankan Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella has presented a “Code of Media Ethics” to a parliamentary select committee. The bill, which amounts to blanket censorship of journalists and media institutions, was announced in early June. It will be put to parliament in September.
"Rambukwella said the actions of certain media institutions in the recent past had led to 'many problems' and 'therefore it had become an urgent need of the hour to introduce a code of ethics for a good media culture.' The government, which is notorious for its attacks on journalists and the media, is taking another step toward police-state rule.
"Most of the code’s clauses are vaguely phrased to allow for the broadest interpretation in gagging media freedom. It states that “no publications should be published which offends against the expectations of the public.” But it will be the government that decides what constitutes “public expectations,” allowing it to exploit the clause to suppress criticism. Already, the government and pro-government individuals have used “public interest litigations” to seek such restrictions. …"
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