Sri Lanka has been through hell and back-three times over. A thirty-year civil war, suicide bombers tearing through Easter Sunday worship, and regime change experiments scripted by foreign hands. Yet somehow, after every trauma, we rise- scarred but unbroken. And standing guard through each of these chapters was a law that many love to hate but few truly understand: the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA).
Now we are told by the international chorus-from Geneva to Brussels-that the PTA must be dismantled, rewritten, or completely buried. And suddenly, our Prime Minister echoes that line, promising the abolition of what she calls a threat to democracy. But just days before, the President himself warned of small extremist groups resurfacing. Are they not speaking from the same national platform? Or is someone playing both sides of the global game?
Let’s be clear: Sri Lanka does not need lectures from foreign powers who have their own ironclad terror laws- be it the USA’s Patriot Act, the UK’s Terrorism Acts, or India’s UAPA. These nations don’t blink twice before detaining suspects, silencing threats, or defending their sovereignty with force. Why then, are we expected to fight terrorism with flower garlands and Facebook likes?
The PTA has saved lives. It has stopped bombs. It has dismantled terror cells. Is it perfect? No. Should it be abused? Never. But to abolish it completely, in the name of human rights dictated from abroad, is not reform- it is surrender.
Terrorism in Sri Lanka is not a memory; it is a recurring threat. We have homegrown extremists, foreign-funded provocateurs, ideological viruses imported online, and deep state plots we barely see coming. Our geography, our fault lines, and our history demand a strong legal firewall. That firewall is the PTA.
Let those in Geneva shout. Let diplomats write their reports. Sri Lanka will protect its people first. And we will review our laws on our terms, not under the shadow of trade threats, sanctions, or soft diplomacy disguised as human rights.
If the Prime Minister believes the PTA is obsolete, she should explain: To whom is she offering this gift? And what will she say when the next attack happens- when lives are lost because we gave up our shield to please a committee?
It is time we stop apologizing for protecting our own.
The Prevention of Terrorism Act must remain. Not untouched, but unbowed. Reformed, yes- but never removed.
Because in a land where blood has been spilled in every province, peace is not a given-it is earned, protected, and if necessary, defended with the laws that kept us standing.
