Protecting election information from false news is a shared responsibility: Colombo conference

Representatives of the Election Commission of Sri Lanka (ECSL), journalists and civil society organisations met in Colombo on October 30 to discuss ways to protect the integrity of election information. The 'Beyond the Algorithm' event was organised by Democracy Reporting International (DRI), with the European Union co-funding the project.

Opening the event, DRI executive director Nicola Schmidt said disinformation is a global phenomenon. She noted that generative artificial intelligence, deepfake technologies and social media accelerate the spread of false information.

Speaking at the event, Election Commission member A.M. Faaiz said algorithms decide what appears on our screens, but algorithms do not vote. Behind every screen is a citizen, and democracy is the promise that citizens choose freely and in an informed manner, he said. He added that the commission, with support from DRI and Factum, is developing a strategic action plan on disinformation.

According to research findings presented at the event, 66 accounts on the video platform TikTok had impersonated political parties and candidates; 51 of them were removed following complaints. The research also found that women politicians were heavily targeted by technology-facilitated gender-based violence during the 2024-2025 election cycle. Further findings, including political advertisements continuing to air during the election silence period, were also released.