Issuing a clarification on Sri Lanka lifting the ban imposed on several Tamil diaspora organisations, the Defence Ministry says that such inclusions and exclusions for blacklisted individuals and organizations are routinely carried out by relevant authorities after observation and careful study over a continuous period of time.

According to the blacklisting and delisting of persons, 577 individuals and 18 organizations were blacklisted in the year 2021 for financing terrorism under the United Nations Regulation No. 01 of 2012, it said today.

After a series of discussions and careful study conducted at the Ministry of Defence by a committee consisting of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Attorney General’s Department, key Intelligence Agencies, Law Enforcing Agencies and Financial Intelligence Unit of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, and based on reports and evidences with regard to the financing terrorism by individuals and organizations, recommendations were submitted for the listing and delisting, it said. 

“Accordingly, among the aforesaid 577 individuals and 18 organizations, a decision was made to delist 316 individuals and 06 organizations since they no longer continue to fund terrorist activities,” the ministry said. 

Furthermore, it has been decided to blacklist 55 individuals and 03 organizations those recently recognized as active in financing terrorism during the period, it said in a communiqué today.

Thus, forwarding the recommendation of the Ministry of Defence to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on June 29, 2022 for their consent, 316 individuals and 15 organizations were blacklisted on August 1, 2022 by Extraordinary Gazette No. 2291/02.

“Such inclusions and exclusions for blacklisted individuals and organizations are routinely carried out by relevant authorities after observation and careful study over a continuous period of time.”

“Relevant authorities remain to be vigilant on the activities of the delisted individuals and organizations and will ban them again, if raising of funds for financing terrorism is resumed,” the Ministry of Defence further said.