The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) has ordered Sri Lanka Customs to release two Tamil-language books held since their import, ruling that the detention violated the author’s fundamental rights.
The books belong to a consignment of 288 copies printed in Chennai, India, for author B. Piratheepan of Kilinochchi. Customs seized it over claims the books could harm national harmony. Two of the four titles were later released after the Arts Council of Sri Lanka classified them as fiction. Customs still holds 75 copies of one title and 147 of another.
The commission, in an inquiry chaired by retired Supreme Court Judge L.T.B. Dehideniya, found the detention breached the rights to freedom of expression, equality before the law and non-discrimination on grounds of language, as well as the right to use one’s own language.
It ordered the Director General of Customs to release all detained copies immediately and submit a compliance report by 2 December 2026.
