Shakthika Sathkumara
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Shakthika Sathkumara | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1985/1986 |
| Occupations | Writer and civil servant |
Shakthika Sathkumara (Sinhala: ශක්තික සත්කුමාර;[1] born 1985/1986)[2] is a writer and civil servant from Sri Lanka.[3] He was charged under Section 3(1) of the ICCPR Act and Article 291(B) of the Penal Code of Sri Lanka, which covers propagating hatred and incitement of racial or religious violence, and faced up to ten years imprisonment.[4][5][6] In February 2021, he was discharged.[4]
Sathkumara is a non-fiction writer and poet.[7] As well, he worked as an Economic Development Officer at the Polgahawela Divisional Secretariat Office before his arrest.[8]
He published a short story to his Facebook account that included depictions of homosexual Buddhist monks and references of sexual abuse and pedophilia.[2][7] A group of Buddhist monks felt that his story had insulted their religion and they went to the police with their complaints.[9]
2019 Arrest, Detention, and Release
Sathkumara was arrested by the Polgahawela Police on April 2, 2019.[9][4] He was charged under Section 3(1) of the ICCPR Act and Art 291(B) of the Penal Code of Sri Lanka, which covers propagating hatred and incitement of racial or religious violence, and faced up to ten years imprisonment.[4]
While the police investigated his case, Sathkumara was kept in pre-trial detention for 127 days.[10] On February 9, 2021, he was released from the Polgahawela Magistrate Court without an indictment.[10] His discharge occurred several days before the United Nations Human Rights Council sessions in Geneva.[10]