Sri Lankan author Shakthika Sathkumara was released today after the case filed against him was discontinued.
The case was discontinued after Attorney General (AG) Dappula de Livera decided not to file indictments.
Human Rights Group Amnesty International said “Shakthika should never have spent a day behind bars for exercising his right to freedom of expression.
Shakthika Sathkumara was arrested in 2019 for publishing a book, which was deemed as insulting Buddhism.
He was detained under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
Following his arrest on April 1, 2019, the trial against him was delayed on multiple occasions.
Sathkumara is an award-winning author of seven short story collections, four poetry anthologies, a novel and at least 17 non-fiction books on literary theory, theatre art and Buddhism. (NewsWire)
