Attempts are being made to sabotage the government through various fake news targeting the tourism industry of Sri Lanka, Deputy Minister of Tourism, Ruwan Ranasinghe, said.
Addressing the media, Deputy Minister Ranasinghe said that this was evident through two specific incidents that had been widely circulated on social media recently, involving the Weligama and Arugambay areas.
“The first instance was a video of a Philippine national being assaulted in Weligama. Investigations have found that this was an incident that occurred in 2024. Secondly, a notice has been issued requesting tourists to refrain from wearing bikinis in public places in the Arugambay area. This has also been found to be an attempt to cause racial tension in the area,” he said.
Deputy Minister Ranasinghe said that the notice on Arugambay has been issued at a time when the government was working with the Muslim Community to establish control at key local councils, including the Colombo Municipal Council.
“We inquired in this regard from the Muslim Community in Arugambay. They reported one incident of a nude person walking in public, which they opposed. We also suspect that this is an incident with an ulterior motive by some people or group to cause issues in the area as the government is working to strengthen its power,” he said.
Deputy Minister Ranasinghe pointed out that the government considers these incidents as attempts by some to cause racial tensions and sabotage its efforts to develop the nation.
He warned that stringent legal action would be taken against any person or group attempting to harm the economy by targeting the tourism industry.
The Deputy Minister of Tourism further requested the public not to fall victim to such fake news. (Newswire)
