Samagi Jana Balawegaya MP Kavinda Jayawardena apologized in Parliament for not voting in favour of passing the Online Safety Bill (OSB).
“I personally saw it as an important Bill, but it was depicted as a demon. Recently, I spoke to an official at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to lodge a complaint regarding a defamatory statement. I asked if the complaint could be lodged under the OSB.”
MP Jayawardena said that the official questioned him about his vote against the Bill in response.
“I felt embarrassed. We were shown that the OSB would hurt our democratic and political rights. We were told that our statements online would be used to imprison us,” he said.
MP Jayawardena also mentioned that the CID official informed him that the members of the Online Safety Commission had not yet been appointed, urging the government to make the necessary appointments promptly.
“I regret voting against this Bill, and I apologize for my vote,” the MP said. (Newswire)