23 January 2024 01:26 pm Views - 2233
By Yohan Perera and Ajith Siriwardana
Kicking off the debate on the Online Safety Bill in the House, the Minister said more than 500 nude photographs have been circulated within the first few weeks of 2024.
“There have also been 6,690 instances of online sexual abuse last year,” he said.
“These figures are only what have been reported and recorded by the CID. There could be many more online crimes and abuses that have gone unreported,” he added.
The Minister said the Online Safety Bill only covers online crimes, preventing provocations which could lead to insurgencies, disturb religious and ethnic harmony etc.
“We don’t intend to victimize anyone using the Online Safety Bill,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Minister assured that the amendments to the Bill proposed by civil movements, the UN Resident Representative and the Asian Coalition will be considered later.
“I had discussions with these organizations and they came out with some amendments to the Bill. However, the Attorney General has informed me that some of these amendments cannot be accommodated now. Therefore, I will submit those amendments to the Cabinet when it meets next time and then present them to Parliament later. However, we will bring in only the amendments recommended by the Supreme Court as of now. We will approve the Bill now and bring in further amendments later,” he assured.