Sri Lanka has decided to amend a decades old media law, resulting in the regulation of all news websites and electronic media.
The government made the announcement a week after it raided and temporarily shut down two anti-government websites.
The amendments to the Press Council Law established in 1973, will mean that websites and electronic media will have to adhere to media codes that are set by the Sri Lankan government.
Commenting on the new reforms, Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella told Reuters
‘We will bring amendments to the Press Council Law to include the electronic and web media to ensure accountability’
Sri Lankan media groups have slammed the government’s move to amend the press law.
In March, the government censored all mobile news alerts about the military or police.
Since the end of the war in 2009, the government has tightened restrictions on press freedom, drawing criticism from the United States and the European Union, among others for arresting journalists critical of the government.
