it doubly hard to seek redress when they are victims of online violence and exploitation and in situations of non-consensual intimate image sharing, as they will be further penalised by the authorities. Therefore, these provisions not only penalise the LGBTQI+ community and curtail their freedom of expression both online and offline but also limit their access to justice. Transgender people are subject to severe discrimination by way of Section 399 of the Penal Code which criminalises ‘cheating by personation’. They are targeted by the authorities on the basis that they are “pretending” to be of a different gender (Amnesty International, 2019). This provision is replicated in the newly introduced, heavily criticised OSA under Section 18, with the addition of the idea that impersonation happens in the online space. An important point to note is that the OSA provision does not include the element of ‘cheating’, which means that all forms of impersonation is criminalised through the OSA. According to the same provision, if convicted of this offence, you will be liable to imprisonment which may extend up to three years or to a fine not exceeding three hundred rupees or both. This curtails people’s freedom to have an anonymous online presence, engage in satire, etc. Sachini Perera, Executive Coordinator of RESURJ, a transnational feminist alliance of younger feminists from the Global South, stated that being able to function anonymously online helped queer people explore their gender identity more freely and build communities through this anonymous identity (S. Perera, personal communication, 22 February, 2024). She further stated that anonymity is a feminist principle, enabling experimenting with gender identity, safety for queer persons and women facing discrimination, in dismantling taboos of sexuality and heteronormativity. Therefore, with this new provision, they would be forced to either leave the online space or reveal their identity. Sachini Perera also highlighted this provision criminalising ‘impersonation’ is a product of what civil society organisations and activists have been asking for; to criminalise online trolling and bullying. There is now a requirement for an exact online replica of who we are in our day-to-day lives. She makes note of the Social Media Declaration 2019, an initiative by civil society organisations that intended to “create a guideline/declaration in this regard, and that it should come from within Sri Lankan media and civil society itself” (Gunawardena, 2019). She stated that looking at it from a queer, working-class perspective, it was evident that it was formulated by a certain class of people. The use of phrases such as “responsible use of social media,” (Social Media Declaration, 2019) which if contextualised, risks drawing parallels between words like “obscene”, and “indecent”, and therefore calls for introspection about embedded biases in coming up with solutions. In 2023, the HRCSL issued guidelines for police officers to ensure non-discrimination of the transgender community, emphasising that they too are entitled to the constitutionally protected right to equality (Constitution of Sri Lanka, Article 12). These guidelines were based on the Yogyakarta Principles (Yogyakarta Principles, 2017) which apply international human rights law to sexual orientation and gender identity. Prior to this, in 2022, the Inspector General of Police issued an apology on behalf of the police for the harassment LGBTQI+ people are subject to at police stations. This was followed by a circular titled “Matters to be considered when dealing with transgender people and people who have undergone gender transition” (IGP Issues Circular to Police on Dealing With Transgender Persons, 2023). Despite these developments, the LGBTQI+ community continues to be targeted both online and offline, and their freedom of expression continues to be curtailed. It is important to frame freedom of expression in a broader sense so that it encompasses the expression of gender and sexual identities. Moreover, in coming up with solutions for the curtailing of freedom of expression, we must be conscious of heteronormative and colonial ideas having a - 23 -