A prominent Sri Lankan Buddhist monk, Galagodaatte Gnanasara, known for his close ties to former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, has been sentenced to nine months in prison for making derogatory remarks about Islam and inciting religious hatred.
The Colombo Magistrate’s Court delivered the verdict on Thursday, convicting Gnanasara for statements made during a 2016 press conference. This ruling is notable as Sri Lanka seldom prosecutes Buddhist monks. It is the second time Gnanasara, frequently accused of hate speech and anti-Muslim violence, has faced imprisonment.
This latest sentence follows a controversial 2019 presidential pardon that released Gnanasara from a six-year jail term for contempt of court and intimidation. He was arrested in December 2023 for his inflammatory comments and fined 1,500 Sri Lankan rupees (£4), with the court ruling that failure to pay would result in an additional month in prison.
In its judgement, the court affirmed that the Sri Lankan Constitution guarantees all citizens, regardless of religion, the right to freedom of belief. Gnanasara has since appealed the verdict, but his request for bail pending the appeal was denied.
Gnanasara’s association with Rajapaksa dates back to the latter’s presidency, during which he was appointed to head a presidential task force on religious harmony. Rajapaksa resigned in 2022 amidst widespread protests over Sri Lanka’s economic crisis.
Gnanasara was previously convicted in 2018 for intimidating the wife of a missing political cartoonist, serving nine months of a six-year sentence before being pardoned by then-President Maithripala Sirisena. Last year, he was briefly jailed on similar hate speech charges targeting the Muslim minority, though he was released on bail while appealing a four-year sentence.
Frances Ibiefo
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