President’s Counsel Faiszer Musthapha and President’s Counsel Upul Kumarapperuma have officially launched a mission today (23) to save the life of Anojan Sivarasa, who has been sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia over a social media post.
The government decided yesterday (22) to urgently dispatch the two as special diplomatic envoys to Saudi Arabia to plead for Anojan’s life—a move officially announced in Parliament yesterday by Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath.
As an initial step in this mission, the two lawyers, Faiszer Musthapha and Upul Kumarapperuma, met with former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed—a long-time friend of Sri Lanka—in the Maldives this afternoon to discuss the matter. Speaking during this crucial discussion, former President Mohamed Nasheed stated that, although Anojan’s remarks were deeply offensive to the Muslim community, he was taking a humanitarian stand for the sake of a young man in a desperate situation. The former President also pledged to provide his full support to save the young man’s life.
President’s Counsel Upul Kumarapperuma confirmed that the meeting held in the Maldives today was highly successful and that he is preparing to travel to Saudi Arabia in the coming days. A notable aspect of this critical diplomatic mission—undertaken with the direct intervention of the President and the Foreign Minister—is that both individuals are funding the trip with their own personal wealth rather than using government funds.