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President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is currently on a visit to Germany, and a photo of the meeting between the presidents of the two countries has attracted a lot of attention on social media. We took steps to investigate the credibility of this photo.
Social Media Posts :
A photo circulated on social media, purpoting to be an authentic photo of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake meeting the German President in Berlin. The attempt was to show the height difference between the two Presidents.
Here is how it was posted on Twitter on 11th.
This same photo was circulated among Facebook users on 12th.
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We investigated this photo as there is an unsual height difference between the two presidents.
Fact Check :
President Anura Kumara Dissanayke met with German President Frank Walter Steinmeier at the Bellevue Palace in Berlin on 11th afternoon.
An offcial state welcoming ceremony for the President was held there, and since the circulated photo seems to be taken during the ceremony, we focused on the official photos from the ceremony.
The photos of the afforementioned ceremony have been published by the Presidential Media Division of Sri Lanka, and on the official Facebook page of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake. In those photos, an unsual height gap between German President Frank Walter, and Anura Kumara Dissanayke isn’t seen as depicted in the above social media posts.
Similarly, other photos from the same ceremony can be seen in President Anura’s official Facebook account, and there too, no unsual height difference can be seen between the two presidents.
Below are those photos.
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Also, a video of this ceremony was sent to mainstream media by the Presidential Media Division. In that video too, there isn’t an unsual height difference to be seen.
However, during our investigation we found out that originally the actual photo of the circulated photo was published by the GettyImages.
gettyImages| gettyImages | Archived Link
Below is a comparison between the photo circulating on social media and the actual photo.
Accordingly, it is clear that the photos circulating on social media are edited photos.
Furthermore, these photos were published in the official Facebook account of the German President, and there too it is clear the the social media posts are edited.
President’s visit to Germany
President Anura left the island on the night of June 10th for an official visit to the Federal Republic of Germany on the invitation of German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
The visit aims to hold bilateral discussions with the German President, government ministers and high-level representatives. The Presidential Media Division states that it is hoped to focus on developing relations between the two countries in the fields of trade, digital economy, investment and vocational training.
It is also stated that the President expects to attend the business forum and several business meetings organized by the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and to meet Sri Lankans living in Germany.
President Anura Kumara is also accompanied by the Minister of Foreing Affairs, Foreign employment, and Tourism, Mr. Vijitha Herath, and a group of senior government officials. Here is an report published regarding that.
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Conclusion :
A photo circulated on social media purporting to be an authentic photo of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake meeting the German President in Germany. It tried to suggest the height difference between the two Presidents. But, upon investigating the official photos, it is clear that the actual photo is edited out.
Title:Altered Image of President Anura Meeting German President Uses Real Background Photo
Fact Check By: Fact Crescendo TeamResult: Altered
