Sri Lankan journalists have staged a peaceful protest urging against the ratification of the controversial media bill passed by a ruling PNC-dominated Parliament on Tuesday.
The protest, in which some 20 journalists participated, was held at the Maldivian High Commission in Colombo. During the protest, journalists appealed to President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu against the ratification of the media bill which would grant the government significant control over the media.
Arosha Fernando, a Sri Lankan journalist who participated in the protest, appealed to the President against ratifying the bill, citing it would revoke press freedom in the Maldives. He added that democracy can only be upheld by ensuring press freedom.
Sri Lanka’s journalist @sandunarosha has demanded that President @MMuizzu not sign the draconian media control bill.Video - @MoosaRasheed_ pic.twitter.com/MqqEZKrXTg
— Maldives Voice (@MaldivesVoice4) September 17, 2025
Notably, Community to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an international organization advocating for the rights of journalists, also appealed to President Muizzu against ratifying the bill.
#Maldives: CPJ is deeply concerned that the Maldives Parliament has passed a bill that would undermine the work of independent journalists and place the media under government control.We urge President @MMuizzu to reject the Maldives Media and Broadcasting Regulation Bill and… https://t.co/NjdrD44ozW
— CPJ Asia (@CPJAsia) September 17, 2025
 On August 18, Thulhaadhoo MP Abdul Hannan Aboobakr, an independent lawmaker aligned with the government, submitted a bill that seeks to dissolve the Maldives Media Council (MMC) and the Maldives Broadcasting Commission (BroadCom), replacing them with a single regulatory body — a seven-member Maldives Media and Broadcasting Commission (MMBC).
The bill, widely critiqued by both local and international journalism groups for its vague and ambiguous terminology, is openly backed by the People’s National Congress (PNC) administration.
The Parliament worked through recess on the bill, and the PNC used its supermajority to ensure its passage with a majority vote of 60-1 in an extraordinary sitting on Tuesday, amid protests both within and outside the Parliament – the former of which led to several parliamentarians from the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) getting forcibly removed from the chambers.
The passage of the contentious bill had come just hours after a petition signed by 151 journalists from 41 different media outlets demanding the withdrawal of the bill was rejected by the Petitions Committee, which decided that the concerns raised in the petition had been properly addressed in the amendments made during the review by the Independent Institutions Committee.
While journalist describe the bill as a direct threat to press freedom, free speech, and an attempt to stamp out all voices of dissent, the PNC administration touts it as an important legislature that protects people from defamation, disinformation and misinformation, and paves the path for accountability in the media field.
In this regard, Minister of Youth Empowerment, Information and Arts Ibrahim Waheed (Asward), citing there were “controlling” characteristics in the controversial media bill when it was initially submitted to the Parliament, said the bill was passed after removing these provisions.
“Control bill no longer exists. When it [the bill] was submitted, it contained controlling characteristics as stated [by journalists]. However, we have amended the control bill characteristics. Now it is a regulatory bill,” he said.
 
According to Asward, the original media bill was a mix of the most recent bills formulated by Maldives Media Council (MMC) and Maldives Broadcasting Commission (BroadCom).