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With the disaster affecting Sri Lanka, a lot of false and misleading information is shared through social media platforms. Among these, a post was shared stating that the relief aid sent by Pakistan to Sri Lanka had expired. Here is a fact-check we conducted in this regard.
Social Media Posts :
Indian media had reported that the goods sent by Pakistan to Sri Lanka as disaster relief had expired. The media reports state that this is confirmed by a picture on an X-rated note posted by the Pakistani High Commission, and that the relevant picture has now been removed.
The news was also widely shared on social media.
We conducted a fact-check to verify whether the aid sent by Pakistan to Sri Lanka had expired.
Fact Check :
The official X account of the Pakistan High Commission in Sri Lanka posted a message with photos of relief bags provided by Pakistan to the affected people in Sri Lanka. The expiry date mentioned in the photo of the rice bags was December 2024, leading to reports that expired rice had been provided to the country. (This post has now been removed.)
The official Facebook page of the Pakistan High Commission in Sri Lanka also posted a post with photos in this regard, stating that the relief package included rice, dry rations, and essential supplies.
However, the photos of the rice bags that were published before were later removed. Upon examining the relevant photos, we noticed that the bags of those relief packages included the local products. However, to further clarify this matter, we contacted the Pakistan High Commission in Sri Lanka.
Pakistan High Commission in Sri Lanka
When we inquired about this from the Pakistani High Commission in Sri Lanka, they stated that the yellow bags shown in the photos did not contain rice but dry food items, and that the bag was only used to put all the dry food items inside it. Accordingly, they have removed the covers of the dry rations that arrived from Pakistan, and have used those bags in the picture to store and distribute them. They confirmed that the food items inside them are not expired, and that the bags were used only for distributing dry food purchased from the local market. The Pakistani High Commission stated that it is committed to helping Sri Lankan citizens and requested the citizens not to fall for false and misleading news.
Accordingly, the Pakistani High Commission confirmed that the circulating social media post stating that the distributed food and dry rations from Pakistan have expired is a misleading statement.
Below is a video they sent us of the bags being opened at our request.
Similarly, on November 29th, the official Facebook page of the Pakistan High Commission in Sri Lanka posted the instances of the items being taken out from the Pakistani ship PNS SAIF, anchored at the Colombo Port, to support the victims, and the items officially donated and packaged by the Sri Lankan navy.
Director of the Public Diplomacy and International Security Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism.
We also inquired about this from the Director General of the Public Diplomacy Division and the International Security Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Thushara Rodrigo. He confirmed that a mechanism has been developed to obtain foreign aid through the intervention of state institutions, and that there has been no report of receiving such expired aid at any time. He stated that Sri Lanka is currently receiving enormous assistance from Pakistan and India and that there is a possibility of various incorrect information being exchanged due to geopolitical circumstances.
A video showing the relief bags provided by Pakistan to Sri Lanka being distributed by air was posted on the official Facebook page of the Sri Lankan Air Force. Here too, the yellow bags in question are seen being flown by a Pakistan Navy Harbin Z-9 helicopter, continuing to assist in Sri Lanka’s flood relief efforts, rescuing four people from Kolonnawa, Wellampitiya, and Gampaha areas, and providing dry rations to displaced families.
Social activist Chirantha Amarasinghe has posted a video explaining this. You can refer to the video here.
Support from neighboring Pakistan and India
The country continues to receive significant assistance from neighboring Pakistan and India in its efforts to rebuild from the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwa. Pakistan has provided essential relief supplies to flood-affected families through the Sri Lanka Navy by the Pakistan Navy’s naval ship PNS SAIF. India has allowed Pakistani aid planes carrying relief material to Sri Lanka to use and pass through its airspace, upon the request to provide humanitarian assistance to Sri Lanka. The Indian Prime Minister has pledged continued support for relief, rescue, and rehabilitation efforts under Operation Sagar Bandhu, and all necessary assistance in the reconstruction of Sri Lanka. First, India sent humanitarian aid to the country through the naval vessels INS Vikrant and INS Udayagiri, and continued to provide assistance.
Note: As the yellow bags of ration distributed by Pakistan are said to have been airlifted to Kolonnawa, Wellampitiya, and Gampaha, we are continuously trying to contact the people living in those areas who received these rations, and we hope to update this article with their confirmation. However, we are unable to independently verify whether these bags contained rice or not. Therefore, this article has been prepared by including only the confirmations we have received from the relevant parties in this regard.
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Conclusion :
Our investigation shows that there is no credible evidence to confirm that the rice received from Pakistan has expired. Reports stating that the rations received were expired are denied by the Pakistan High Commission and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Until verifiable, reliable sources confirm otherwise, reports of the expiry of aid to Sri Lanka by Pakistan cannot be confirmed.
Title:Misleading claims about expired flood relief aid from Pakistan to Sri Lanka
Fact Check By: Fact Crescendo TeamResult: Misleading
