At a time when public attention is on the Bill on Online Protection, social media user Ramzi Raziq, who was charged under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) No. 56 of 2007 for a comment he made on social media, was acquitted in the absence of any evidence. The Aluthkade Magistrate’s Court has ordered the release from the case on September 21. Sri Lanka Latest News
After the Attorney General informed the court that he had no objection to closing the case as there is no evidence against him, this was done.
He was arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department in April 2020 due to a comment posted on social media.
Ramzi Raziq spoke to BBC Sinhala about the incident.
“The time I was arrested was a time when racism was at its peak. As soon as the presidential election was over, there was a big threat, especially to the Muslim community, from things like racist organizations. At this time, these people have taken various false propaganda about the Muslim people from social media and other media,” he says.
“In early 2020, I saw a post with the spread of Corona. There was a false idea that the Muslim community was deliberately spreading the coronavirus among the Sinhalese people. “Based on that, I posted on my social media account that Muslims should wage an ideological struggle against these,” Ramsey explained about the comments that led to his arrest.
“In that comment, I wrote that Muslims should wage an ‘Ideological Jihad’ or ‘Ideological Jihad’ against these things. The responses to it were very bad. “Many people misunderstood that I was inciting Muslims to war or conflict,” he explains.
“I am being arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department based on the word ‘Jihad’. There, I was beaten by those two officers. Later I was remanded in custody because I was charged under the ICCPR Act.”
He said that he could not present the incident of assault to the court at that time because he could not meet his lawyer or his family due to the Corona rules.
Also, he explained to BBC Sinhala that he was not physically abused in Colombo remand prison but had to face some mental abuse.
He was remanded for five months and later released on bail.
“I could not get proper treatment for my ailments in prison. Also, due to an accident in the prison, I broke a bone in my arm. I could not get proper treatment for that either. So I still have a disability in my hand,” he says.
His acquittal on September 21 was a free speech decision, he says.
“Due to this false accusation, I and my family were in a lot of trouble. They were afraid that there would be some trouble for the family. My children are still in school. This also greatly affected their education. Even though the Criminal Investigation Department dragged this case for three years, they could not present any evidence against me.”
Ramzi Razik says that he will continue to raise his voice against such false and incorrect propaganda.
“As a social media activist, I raised my voice against these false racist statements. I continue to do that. Another bill regarding social media is going to be brought. It was at such a time that I received such a decision.”
Source: BBC Sinhala
