General Secretary of the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thero has had to change his name, CEO of the Bodu Bala Sena organization Dilanthe Withanage told Sri Lanka Mirror.
This is because the Facebook has put a restriction on his name.
He said that this decision has been taken due to the tendency of his name being blocked when “Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara” is mentioned on the Facebook pages.
Dilantha said that Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thero will be using the pseudonym "Ape Hamduruwoo" (Our monk) in future.
Accordingly, it has been decided to use the pseudonym "Ape Hamduruwoo" in the future for the organization's communication through Facebook.
Government henchmen who do not know what hate speech is
Information technology experts say that the Thero's name is being automatically blocked on Facebook because the government assigned officials at Facebook to remove hate speech have provided the name "Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara" as hate speech.
Legal experts point out that since this is a serious restriction on his right to express his views, it is possible for him to lodge a complaint and file a case at Human Rights Commission.
Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thero , who was convicted on August 8, 2018 of four counts of contempt of court, was sentenced to imprisonment term of 19 years to be completed in six years and was released on a presidential pardon last May.
(Mirror)