President Anura Kumara Posing for a Photo with Jaffna youth, without any security in the vicinity?

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When images and videos related to visits by the President get shared, at times they get blended with misleading narratives before going viral. This is a fact-check we conducted regarding one such image that circulated on social media.

Social Media Posts:

This photo, which shows President Anura Kumara Dissanayake standing alongside several young men and an elderly woman, was shared on social media with the caption: “For the first time, a president in Jaffna without security, with the youth.”

Facebook | Archived Link

Many users appeared to believe that the image showed President Anura Kumara Dissanayake meeting the people of Jaffna without security, and shared the post with captions such as “Our simple president with our people of Jaffna.”

But by closer inspection, some versions of the image appear to be cropped, and we investigated this further.

Fact Check :

Since the social media posts give the impression that the President posed for a photograph with a group of youths in Jaffna without any security personnel nearby, we reviewed media reports related to the President’s recent visit to the Northern Province, which took place a few days earlier.

During the President’s visit to the Northern Province, videos were shared on social media on the morning of January 16 showing him walking along a main road for exercise, alongside a few of his security officers. Several mainstream media outlets also reported on these visuals. They were reported as here and here.

When the images from those videos are compared with the photo shared on social media, the President can be seen wearing the same attire in both instances, suggesting that the image was taken from the same setting.

We also found a video that shows the same background seen in the photo that went viral on social media. While walking along a road in Jaffna for exercise, accompanied by his security officers, President Dissanayake stops to speak casually with a group of people he met on the way, and poses together for a photo/video in a friendly manner.

The video is shared below.

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1886580545552245

Accordingly, it is clear that the photo that went viral on social media is actually a cropped image taken from this video. In the cropped version, the security officers and other people who were walking with Anura Kumara Dissanayake have been deliberately removed from the frame.

Below is a comparison of the frames of the above original video and the viral image with the misleading interpretation.

Presidential Media Division

When we contacted the Presidential Media Division for clarification, they said that the President had friendly conversations with several people he met on different occasions while going out for his morning exercise. However, they stressed that the claim shared on social media that the President went without security is false.

Regional Reporters

Meanwhile, our regional reporters also confirmed that the President did not visit any location in Mannar or Jaffna without security during his tour.

The President attends Thai Pongal celebrations and programmes in the Northern Province.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake visited the Northern Province on January 15 and 16 to take part in several programmes, including the Northern Province Thai Pongal celebrations. According to media reports, on January 15, the President attended the Northern Province Thai Pongal festival held at the Aiyanar Kovil playground in Velanai, Jaffna. It could be seen reported as this.

Meanwhile, the President was welcomed with a strong public reaction during the Thai Pongal celebrations in Jaffna, as seen here. In addition, a northern province program of the national anti-drug campaign, Ratama Ekata (“Together for the Nation”), aimed at eliminating harmful drugs, was held on the grounds of Jaffna Technical College on the 16th.

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Conclusion :

Our fact-check proves that the photo shared on social media is misleading. It has been cropped to suggest that the President was walking along a road in Jaffna and posing for a photo with a group of youths without any security during his Northern Province visit.

However, by analysing the original footage and other related videos, it clearly shows that the President was accompanied by several security personnel at the time.