"Full face" means the whole face of a person including the ears. "Public place" includes any public road, any building, any enclosed or open area, any vehicle or any other mode of transportation while "public road" includes any roadway over a public bridge, any pavement, drain, embankment or ditch belonging or appertaining to a public road.

"The prohibition as specified in paragraph (1), shall not apply if such garment, clothing or such other material is prescribed and authorized by or under any written law," the gazette notification further says.The President has also amended the emergency regulations to include the prohibition to engage in religious, extremist or radical ideologies.

"No person shall engage in preaching religious or any extremist or radical ideologies which glorifies, encourages, promotes or espouses terrorism or specified terrorist activity," it says. "No person shall employ or engage the services of any non- citizen as an instructor, teacher, lecturer or in any other manner involved in instructing, teaching or lecturing religious or any extremist or radical ideologies which glorifies, encourages, promotes or espouses terrorism or specified terrorist activity or any educational activity connected to such religious, extremist or radical ideologies which glorifies, encourages, promotes or espouses terrorism or specified terrorist activity."

After the suicide bomb attacks on churches and hotels by Jihadi terrorists on April 21 killed 253 people, President Sirisena has taken steps under the emergency regulation to prohibit the use of face coverings of all sorts which is an obstacle to ensure the identity of the people and a threat to national and public security,