News
Pasting anti-Israeli stickers: HRCSL rules TID arrest unlawful
View(s):By Mimi Alphonsus
The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) has ruled that the arrest and detention of Mohammad Rusdi for pasting anti-Israel stickers were a violation of his fundamental rights.
In a 30-page report, the HRCSL recommended immediate corrective measures, including the discontinuation of the restriction order against Mr Rusdi and the implementation of a procedure to minimise abuse of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), under which he was arrested.
Mr. Rusdi was arrested by the Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) on March 22, 2025, after he pasted two stickers with the words “F*** Israel. End Apartheid” in the Colombo City Centre mall. The TID arrested Mr Rusdi under the PTA, and President Anura Kumara Dissanayake—in his capacity as Minister of Defence—issued a detention order allowing Mr Rusdi to be held without charge. He spent over two weeks in TID detention.
The HRCSL inquiry found that the arrest violated multiple constitutionally protected rights, including the freedom of expression and the right to equality and non-discrimination.
The commission said the TID had cited several unsuitable factors in determining that Mr Rusdi was capable of violent acts of religious extremism and thus requiring detention. These factors included his views on Gaza, his social media feed containing content on the conflict, increased distance from his parents and challenges in his personal life. The TID also analysed telephone records and found that Mr Rusdi had contacts with someone who had in turn been in touch with a person accused of offences under the PTA (that is, Mr Rusdi did not have direct contact with an accused).
The HRCSL found that the TID’s evidence was wholly inappropriate. It especially condemned the department’s consideration of having mutual contacts with people accused of crimes as a reason for suspicion.
The HRCSL concluded that Mr Rusdi’s arrest was a product of racial profiling, stating, “It seems unlikely that distance from one’s parents, challenges in one’s personal life, and outrage towards global politics and events would be seen as indicative of ‘radicalisation’ had the victim not been Muslim.”
A second issue highlighted in the report was the use of the PTA outside of its scope and limits. The TID reasoned that Mr Rusdi was detained under the PTA to ascertain his “state of mind” and determine whether he was capable of committing an offence in the future. The HRCSL said such a “preventative” use of the PTA was outside its scope, as it was only intended to arrest those suspected of already being involved in unlawful activity.
The report called for the repeal of the PTA and cautioned against any law that would replace it, stating that it risks providing “legal cover” for measures even outside of its scope, as had happened with Mr Rusdi’s arrest under the PTA. The government is currently drafting a new law to replace the PTA.
Just prior to the HRCSL inquiry, on April 7, 2025, the TID released Mr Rusdi on the grounds of insufficient evidence. However, it issued a restriction order under the PTA limiting his movements so that it could “monitor” him.
The HRCSL recommended the discontinuation of this restriction order on the basis that it is not authorised under the PTA. They also recommended that the Ministry of Public Security pay Mr Rusdi Rs. 200,000
in compensation.
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