In a statement, the two bodies say that the Press council gave the authorities a great deal of scope to coerce the media.

“By reviving this mechanism for harassing the Sri Lankan media, President Sirisena is dashing the hopes raised by his election and is again placing the media under a permanent threat of authoritarian abuses,” said Benjamin Ismaïl, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk.

“We urge the president to rescind this decision and instead to begin a complete overhaul of the Press Council with the aim of turning it into an entity that guarantees media independence.”

JDS added: “The government’s move to re-enact the controversial legislation reinforces serious and legitimate fears, as the desire to curtail media freedom always reflects anti-democratic intentions.”