• Immigration Dept. informs RTI Commission of issues with searching on computerised data system 

The Department of Immigration and Emigration has informed the Right to Information (RTI) Commission that it is unable to provide accurate information on Parliamentarians’ dual citizenship status merely by entering certain names in English into the computerised data system owing to likely spelling errors and the possibility of several persons sharing the same name.

This was notified in a response to the Commission seeking a written explanation as to why the department could not provide information regarding the same to the polls monitor, the People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL), which had appealed to the Commission over unsuccessful information requests made to the department seeking to identify MPs with dual citizenship being rejected by the department’s Information Officer and the Designated Officer.

In a reply letter dated 14 February 2023, which was seen by The Daily Morning, Controller General of Immigration and Emigration Harsha Illukpitiya stated further that according to the department’s database, the dual citizenship number will be used to search for individuals with dual citizenship, but that when the number is unavailable, the individual’s full name in English, date of birth, and father’s and mother’s names will be used to search for the same. The answer also stated that the Information Officer and the Designated Officer of the Department had initially refused access to the said information in terms of Section 5(1)(a) of the RTI Act on the grounds that it was personal and private information.

Speaking to The Daily Morning, PAFFREL’s Executive Director Rohana Hettiarachchi said yesterday (2) that his organisation, as the next step, will take necessary measures to collect the abovementioned information to obtain the said details of the MPs with dual citizenship.

The RTI Commission on 1 February instructed the department to hand over a written submission within two weeks explaining why the department is unable to divulge information relating to MPs who possess dual citizenship in connection with the relevant RTI appeal made by PAFFREL

Hettiarachchi said on 2 February: “They (the department) have provided various reasons and the RTI Commission a different reason. So, finally, the Commission has given them two weeks to come up with a written submission. If they come up with a solid answer, we also can take further action based on it.” 

On 22 December 2022, PAFFREL made an RTI appeal to the RTI Commission, seeking to identify MPs who possess dual citizenship. Accordingly, Hettiarachchi said on 26 December 2022 that he expects the RTI Commission to respond to the appeal, and that failing which, he would file a public interest litigation with regard to the issue of MPs holding dual citizenship.

On 25 October 2022, PAFFREL made the initial RTI application to the department with regard to dual citizen MPs. On 16 November 2022, the RTI request made by PAFFREL was rejected on the grounds that the department was not in a position to provide the information requested under the personal category. PAFFREL thus appealed to the Controller General of the said department, but there has been no response from the latter.