09 April 2026
The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) notes the publication of the Convention on the Suppression of Terrorist Financing (Amendment) Bill, Financial Transactions Reporting (Amendment) and the Prevention of Money Laundering (Amendment) Bill in March 2026. Of these Bills the Convention on the Suppression of Terrorist Financing (Amendment) Bill and the Financial Transactions Reporting (Amendment) Bill were tabled in Parliament today [9th April 2026]. This statement will focus only on the bills tabled in Parliament.
The purpose of these Bills is to ostensibly comply with the requirements of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which is the global standard setting body for anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT). There are significant concerns as to how successive governments have used the FATF framework as cover to undermine rights of free association and expression. As such these latest amendments need to be viewed with heightened scrutiny.
CPA’s concerns around the Bill relate to both the contents and the law-making process. On process, CPA notes that these bills were not open to the public and stakeholders for any meaningful consultative process. Additionally, the timing raises questions. The bills were tabled in Parliament days prior to the Sinhala and Tamil new year holidays and when sittings of court have been suspended. In terms of the Constitution, citizens now have a limited window of two weeks to challenge the constitutional consistency of these complicated bills before the Supreme Court. This is not the first-time governments have rushed through important legislation, severely limiting the public and other stakeholders to engage with and challenge proposed laws and raising questions of the intention of the government in the speed with which this has been done. CPA raises these points when the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction does not allow the Court to consider the policy implications of the proposed bills or their desirability.
CPA further notes that the proposed bills consist of numerous problematic provisions which include:, the broad definition of offences, the expansion of the powers granted to the financial intelligence unit including the enhancement of investigative powers with limited judicial oversight, especially in the context of the Financial Transactions Reporting (Amendment) Bill. This provision places significant burdens on professionals with regard to reporting which will have a direct impact on their ability to discharge their professional responsibilities. CPA is also concerned with the integrity of the evidence collected through the “covert investigative powers” enabled by these bills and the significant restrictions on the right to privacy and the security of the information gathered through such investigations.
These amendments will be added to a legal system that already provides broad powers of investigation, assets freezing and mechanisms to deal with proceeds of crimes. Whilst Sri Lanka needs to adhere to its international obligations, this does not automatically justify the enactment of broad laws. This is especially considering Sri Lanka’s history of utilising such laws to target individuals who have been critical of the government and to crack down on dissent.
Thus, CPA calls on the government to withdraw these bills and allow for a consultative process which is open to the public and all stakeholders in order to develop a coherent legal system which can prevent and punish money laundering and the financing of terrorism but also have sufficient safeguards in place to prevent abuse and misuse by actors within the executive arm of government.