Tattoos, dress styles and military uniforms considered organised crime under proposed law

Daily Mirror reports that Sri Lanka’s proposed Prevention of Organised Crimes Bill was presented to Parliament and that tattoos, clothing styles and military uniforms linked to organised criminal groups could fall within offences under the proposal.

Hiru News reports that the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka demanded withdrawal of the bill. WhatNews reports that the commission considered the proposal incompatible with the constitutional chapter on fundamental rights and international human-rights agreements to which Sri Lanka is a party.

Newswire and WhatNews report that Justice Minister Harshana Nanayakkara rejected claims that the proposed law would permit action against people solely for having tattoos, wearing their preferred clothing or choosing a particular hairstyle. WhatNews also reports the minister said the word “hair” does not appear in the bill.

The reports present competing accounts of the bill’s implications: Daily Mirror describes appearance associated with criminal groups as potentially covered, while the minister and Cabinet spokesperson, as reported by other outlets, say personal appearance alone is not a basis for action. The reports do not provide further details on the bill’s parliamentary progress.

Written automatically by AI from the outlets’ own reports, and not reviewed by an editor. It can be wrong — the original report is the authority.