“FMM hides 40 Million Fraud “ – Lies, half truths and malicious manipulation of facts

Right of Reply

The article under the headline ‘FMM Hides 40 Million Fraud – Former convenor misleads the members’ by Frederica Jansz in the Sunday Leader of 3 June is a vituperative piece of writing filled with lies, half truths and malicious manipulation of facts, passed off as a journalistic endeavour.  The writer has spoken about ethics codes being formulated anew by media organizations all over the world, including Sri Lanka, but has conveniently chosen to ignore them in her malicious attempt to project lies and half-truths as facts and malign the reputation of an individual.

Facts, as the writer should well know, are sacred. Unfortunately, it is an element largely missing in the article, which manipulatively and with extreme malice tries to establish a fallacy that there had been a Rs 40 million fraud and that the Free Media Movement (FMM) has been attempting to cover it up. Facts are also missing in the writer’s sorry excuse of an attempt to report on what transpired at the 29 May AGM of the FMM and the events pertaining to former FMM member Lucian Rajakurnanayke being removed from the FMM membership. What the article contains instead is concoctions and fabrications, and devious exploitations of half-truths that are not just bad journalism but also unscrupulous use of print space for questionable intent.

The article claims:

“The Free Media Movement priding itself on being a non-partisan independent group of journalists, newspaper editors and media personalities who are committed to freedom of expression, opinion and information stand guilty of hiding a forty million rupee fraud…….  

 

For reasons best known to them the funders never bothered to find out whether the FMM had a management structure to manage these monies.

The man behind this transformation of the FMM from purely a voluntary organization to an NGO was one of its most senior and high profile members – Sunanda Deshapriya under whose management at the time the 40 million rupees went missing.”

The Rs 40 million, projected as having been defrauded, was the total amount received by the FMM in 2007, 2008, 2009 from several sources to implement five projects including Human Rights Award, Safety Training, Public Service Journalism Award, Safety Fund, as well as the running of the FMM office. There is documentation to prove that a major part of the 40 million rupees had in fact been used to implement these projects.  In particular, an independent audit was carried out by International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) on the moneys spent on the Human Rights Award project.

While there have been no allegations of 40 million rupees being misappropriated, internal queries had been raised about some expenses relating to the projects. These were investigated and accounts were audited and presented at the 2008 Annual General Meeting (AGM).  However, the audit report was not fully accepted by the members, as the report did not contain the auditor’s comment on the expenses. The Executive Committee was asked to present another report including the comments of the auditors, at a Special General Meeting (SGM) to be called within a period of six months. Unfortunately, this was not done.

Subsequently, an Interim Committee that was set up to look into the allegations of fraud (with Chulawansa Sri Lal as Convenor) took up the issues raised at the AGM and appointed a three-member committee comprising S. G. Punchihewa, Dushantha Samarasinghe and Daya Lankapura to look into them. The committee recommended that the existing accounts should be audited and investigated.  Accordingly retired chief accountant N.J. K.K. Seneviratne was appointed to undertake this task. He audited the existing accounts and presented a report which confirmed that there had not been a Rs. 40 million fraud, but that there was lack of clarity and mismanagement of some of the funds, owing to the fact that there were no receipts or bills to support some of the expenses.

“At last year’s Annual General Meeting on May 23, the FMM decided that it will close all further action into the 40 million rupees unaccounted for in the financial years 2008 and 2009.

 

It was also decided that the Executive Committee of the FMM within one month of the AGM must issue a press release stating the following:

•     The amount of money unaccounted for;

•     The recommendations of the Punchihewa Committee on the financial fraud that has taken place;

•  And explaining why the FMM could not proceed further on the recommendations made by the Punchihewa Committee of the matter.

Not only that. Those present at the AGM agreed on a basic draft of the press release and mandated founder member C. J. Amaratunga to write the final press release and sent it to the executive committee at its next meeting a week later. Amaratunga did so and the executive committee which was chaired by Sunil Jayasekera as Convenor, approved its release to the media.

Sunil Jayasekera took the responsibility to do that. The press release, however, was never issued. Sunil Jayasekera, Convenor of the FMM at the time, maintains that the reason this could not be done was because at the time his life was ‘Seriously under threat’ and the situation in the country against media personnel was ‘dangerous.’”

The AGM of 2011 did discuss the issue at length, especially about what the final decision should be. Despite the disagreement expresssed by several members, and at the insistence of members Waruna Karunatileke and Chulawansa Sri Lal, it was agreed that a  press release would be issued detailing the decision to end the investigations and close the chapter on the whole issue.  Member C. J. Amaratunge was tasked with the formulation of a draft of the press release, to be presented at the next Executive Committee meeting. But at no point was it specified that the press release should be issued within one month of the AGM. The minutes of the 2011 AGM confirm this.

The matter was however taken up at the first meeting of the new Executive  Committee and the draft press release was produced and its contents discussed.  But due to developments in the country that the Executive Committee felt were not conducive to media freedom, the press release was not issued. At no time did Sunil Jayasekera say the decision to hold back the release was due to his life being ‘seriously under threat’.  The press release and its non issuance were discussed at subsequent committee meetings and committee members were aware of the matter.

“In fact the media statement was not released for months and it was only when members of the executive committee picked up enough courage to ask him why it was not done that Jayasekera came up with his excuse saying he would take personal responsibility for not carrying out the AGM decision.

The lack of democracy and open discussion within the FMM is clear by the fact that 11 other members of the executive committee took months before raising the issue.

It was further evident at the AGM when every one of them was silent while members questioned the non implementation of AGM decisions.”

 

The matter of the press release only came up at the 2012 AGM after a committee member came up with a related suggestion – following which, member Waruna Karunatilake asked the question about the press release that should have been issued as per the decision of the previous AGM.  Jayasekera clarified the situation and took responsibility for the committee’s inaction and said he was prepared to step down from his position on the committee, but members unanimously vetoed the suggestion.  However members Waruna Karunatilake, Chulawansa Sri Lal and Ranga Sri Lal insisted that the decision of the last AGM should be carried over and that a press release should be issued within a month of the 2012 AGM.  The heated session was dominated by Karunatilake,  who dismissed all other suggestions to resolve the matter in any other way.

“….the executive committee of the FMM of which Jayasekera was even then the Convenor made a series of proposals to the 2011 May 23 AGM to tighten financial controls of the organisation and those proposals were adopted by the AGM for immediate implementation.

Yet, no such controls have been put into place to date. Jayasekera asserts that the implementation of such methods never arose as the FMM has since then not received monies for any ‘major projects.’

This, members of the FMM say, is again an outright lie. According to accounts presented at the AGM, the FMM has received 120,000 rupees from the Safety Institute, an international NGO and 25,000 rupees from the Sri Lanka Press Institute. In any case, the new financial regulations put in place at the 2011 AGM were not tied to foreign funds. The regulations were to be implemented so that money currently available with the FMM is also not misappropriated.

Following the AGM, new allegations are now emerging that Sunil Jayasekera violated existing rules and spent money without the ‘prior’ approval of the executive committee.”

Waruna Karunatilake reminded the AGM that the appointment of a financial sub- committee to monitor funds had not been set up. Sunil Jayasekera argued that this measure had not been considered necessary as no new projects have been undertaken by the FMM.  A sum of Rs.120, 000 and Rs. 25,000 had been received from two institutions, the latter amount from the Sri Lanka Press Institute, but these monies were only provided as reimbursements (following the submission of receipts and related documents) for expenses incurred by the FMM in August 2011 and January 2012, for  advocacy activities in Jaffna and Colombo.

There have been no allegations whatsoever of Jayasekera violating existing rules or taking financial decisions without discussion and approval of the committee. In fact, according to the constitution, the convenor has no access to any funds of the FMM and can avail them only with the consent of the executive committee.  This procedure has been adhered to as confirmed in the minutes of the meetings.

Other inaccuracies in the article: Lucian Rajakarunanayake was sacked from the FMM because he used his position with the FMM to raise funds for an activity that he implemented in his personal capacity, using the funds which were deposited in his personal account.

As with the sweeping statement that US 400,000 cannot be accounted for, the details relating to the Rajakarunanayke incidents are also incorrect and are based on half truths presented as facts.

There is documentary evidence to prove that a significant portion of the Rs. 40 million has been spent as it should. What cannot be clearly accounted for amounts to a total of Rs 1.3 million relating to expenses incurred in 2007 – 2008.  Jayasekera did mention  that it was not possible to take the investigation further because several individuals who need to be questioned in this regard are no longer in the country.

While admitting that there are some accounting issues with regard to certain expenses, and that all efforts are being made to ensure past mistakes are not repeated, the Executive Committee would like to emphasize that contributions of the committee members to the FMM are purely on a voluntary basis and in the interests of upholding and promoting media rights and freedoms. This is not the case with many journalists, including Frederica Jansz, who received a monthly sum of Euro 750 for three years to co-ordinate a safety project on behalf of INSI.

‘To thine own self be true’, reads a famous quote from Shakespeare’s Hamlet.  We urge the writer to examine her conduct before accusing the FMM of being guilty of ‘twisted logic and subtle manipulation of facts’, for in the final analysis, it is she who is guilty of  unsubstantiated accusations leveled against the FMM.

Executive Committee,

Free Media Movement

7^th June 2012

An Appeal from media freedom groups in Sri Lanka to all participants at the Galle Literary Festival, 2012

An Appeal from media freedom groups in Sri Lanka to all participants at the

Galle Literary Festival, 2012

 

As Sri Lankan journalists and media persons committed to media freedom and to the freedom of expression and opinion in Sri Lanka and in the world, we reach out to welcome all of you who have gathered here, in Galle, in January 2012, to participate in the 6^th Galle Literary Festival, which is well known as a space for intellectual dialogue and creative exchange in the fields of literature, arts and culture.

 

We want to draw your attention to the fact that the month of January, in which we are celebrating the arts and culture here in Galle, is also a month which is marked by many of us with various acts of commemoration and mourning. It was in January 2007 that Sugirtharajan, a photojournalist in Trincomalee, was shot and killed for having published the photographs of five students who had been excecuted by the security forces. In 2009, Lasantha Wickrematunge, the editor of the English weekly the Sunday Leader was shot and killed while on his work on January 8.  In January 2010, cartoonist and writer Prageeth Ekneligoda, was abducted. In none of these cases has anyone ever been prosecuted.

 

During the years in which the government of Sri Lanka was engaged in a war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (the LTTE), the government also launched a war against the media and against the freedom of expression. Through formal and informal censorship and through attacks and intimidation, they have silenced the diversity of opinion in our country. The prevailing climate of impunity has created an environment in which self-censorship has become the norm. The role of the media in building a strong body of conscious citizens, which is a cornerstone of any democratic society, is undermined.

 

In the last six years, close to 40 media persons have been assassinated. Many more have been subject to brutal assaults. Five media institutions have been destroyed by arson attacks. Many newspapers have closed down. Access to websites has been blocked. Those who challenge this situation are regularly attacked and vilified in the media, both state-owned and private. There are no credible investigations into any of these incidents. Over fifty media persons have fled the country as a result of this situation. The final report of the government’s own Lessons Learned and Reconciliation Commission, which was made public in November, calls for investigations into attacks on journalists and reminds the state of its obligation to ensure freedom of expression, opinion and information.

 

As you enjoy an environment in which you may discuss matters of literature and the arts in relative comfort and freedom, we appeal to you to recall the reality of our situation, and to engage with it in your discussion forums. Support the freedom of expression in Sri Lanka in every way that is open to you, here and once you have returned to your homes. Give our message wings to fly with so that our appeal for media freedom and the freedom of expression in Sri Lanka will echo around the world.

 

 

Sri Lanka Working Journalist Association  (SLWJA)

Federation of Media Employers Trade Union (FMETU)

Sri Lanka Muslim Media Fedaration (SLMMF)

Sri Lanka Tamil Journalist Alliance (SLTJA)

South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA – Sri Lanka)

Media Movement for Democracy (MMD)

Free Media Movement (FMM)

Media Organization’s letter to HE President

February 1st,2010

His Excellency the President

Temple Trees,

Colombo 3.

Your Excellency,

The Media Situation in the aftermath of the Presidential Elections

As someone who has repeatedly expressed commitment to upholding the values of a free media as an essential component of democratic society, we wish to bring to your attention the grave situation that has arisen with regard to media freedom in the country. We have already pointed out incidents that took place during the Presidential Election campaign where the media faced suppression and was prevented from expressing diverse and opposing views. We observe that the situation has deteriorated further after the conclusion of the Presidential Elections. The following incidents provide evidence of this trend.

1.The whereabouts of well-known political commentator Prageeth Eknaligoda remain unknown since his disappearance at midnight on 24th January 2010. A regular contributor to the Lankaenews website and father of two children, Eknaligoda suffers from a diabetic condition and has undergone open heart, bypass surgery for which he requires daily medication. His wife has lodged a complaint with the Police and has been informed that investigations are on -going. At a media conference on 25th January 2010 The Minister of Information Lakshman Yapa Abeywardene stated that the Government has information regarding his disappearance. Media organizations have called for any information relating to his disappearance and for his early release but have not received a favourable response so far.

2. The Lankaenews website was blocked on the eve of the Presidential Elections. After complaining to the Elections Commissioner about it, and following his order to Sri Lanka Telecom not to prevent access to the website, the editor and staff of Lankaenews received threatening phone calls. The continued presence of unknown persons in the vicinity of the Lankaenews office has also been noted and the Welikade Police have been duly informed.

3. On the 28th of January, Programme Producer Ravi Abeywickreme of the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation was assaulted by the Transport Co-ordinator, in the presence of the Chairman and the Director General. Other programme producers Kanchana Marasinghe, Herbert Kumara Alagiyawanna, Gamini Pushpakumara and Daya Mahinda Gunatilake were verbally abused. Subsequently, Herbert Kumara Alaguyawanna has been dismissed and the others have been interdicted. They have been informed of this decision by their SLRC Employees Union. They are officers and member of the SLRC Producers’ Association and Free Media Movement.

4. On the 30th of January Chandana Sirimalwatte the chief editor of Lanka, a weekly newspaper was asked to call over at the CID to make a statement. Following questioning he was detained by the CID. The office of the Lanka newspaper the CID was sealed thereafter, but subsequently removed following a court order.

5. Among the reports of post elections violence in various parts of the country is the attack on the residence of provincial reporter from Kurunegala, Gunaratne Liyanarchchi, by an unidentified group on the night of January 28th.

6. On the 1st of February 2010 an unruly crowd attacked a group of media workers from Lake House. Reports indicate that two people have been hospitalized.

7. We would like to remind Your Excellency of the behaviour of the state media during the lead up to the Presidential Election. The Election Commissioner has also expressed his displeasure on the manner in which the state media behaved. Even after the election concluded the state media continues to harass certain media institutions and organizations by publicizing false statements and the use of revengeful language. The state media has also broadcast reports saying that in the event of the Opposition candidate winning the election, he would assassinate Your Excellency and others, and that he would use journalists and resources of the state media to create a state of confusion in the country.

Your Excellency, all these incidents taken as a whole are creating a sense of terror within the media industry in the country due to the intimidation and suppression taking place in different parts of the country by unruly groups targeting members of the Opposition. We believe that if this escalating situation is not brought under control immediately there will be unforeseen repercussions.

If your election victory is to be celebrated in a democratic manner it should not be only limited to your voters, and should not include the suppression of selected media institutions and journalists. We believe that if this situation continues it would not bring you repute but disrepute instead.

We therefore expect Your Excellency to intervene in this matter and ensure that public confidence in democracy is restored and that this unhealthy trend is curbed. We strongly believe that the intervention of Your Excellency is imperative to locating the whereabouts of missing journalist Pradeep Ekneliyagoda and to bring justice to other journalists who are being treated unfairly, as well as to create a free media environment

Thanking You

Free Media Movement

Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association

Newspaper Society of Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum

Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance

Editors Guild of Sri Lanka

South Asian Free Media Association

Federation of Media Trade Unions

Vasu writes to President on defence web intimidations

(lankadissent.org)

Tuesday, 16 December 2008 14:48
 
Presidential Adviser and former MP, Attorney at Law Vasudewa Nanayakkara has written to the President, himself a lawyer that the official website of the Defence Ministry has published an intimidating report on lawyers who appear for persons suspected of terrorist activities.
“The Report has singled out the Tamil Lawyers who filed cases. Exposing the Tamil Lawyers in this manner is extremely dangerous and discriminatory.” writes Mr. Nanayakkara, who stresses that “Your Excellency’s speedy intervention into an extremely urgent matter.” is necessary.

Arguing his case, Mr. Nanayakkara notes, “Civilized citizens agree that every person is presumed innocent, until proved guilty by a court of law. The so-called terrorists are also entitled to obtain the services of a Lawyer. Further, ‘Legal Ethics’ require Lawyers not to decline to appear for a client on the basis of ethnicity. The recent happenings clearly indicate that there is a powerful unit operating within establishments to discourage Lawyers in appearing in cases for LTTE suspects.”

Full text of Mr. Vasudewa Nanayakkara appears below

Vasudewa Nanayakkara
49, Vinayalankara Mawatha, Colombo 10

10-12-2008
His Excellency Mahinda Rajapakse,
President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
Presidential Secretariat,
Colombo.

Your Excellency,

I write this as citizens of Sri Lanka, an Attorney-at-Law and colleague of Your Excellency and expect Your Excellency’s speedy intervention into an extremely urgent matter.

The defense Ministry Website: www.defense.lk carried a Report titled “Who are the Human Rights Violators”. This report was uploaded on 16-11-2008 but still on the web with one amendment. The original Report that appeared in the website is annexed for Your Excellency’s easy perusal.

This Report deals with 9 cases, which were filed in the Supreme Court under the Fundamental Rights Jurisdiction. The intention of this Report is clearly to create an opinion that those who file Fundamental Rights cases for LTTE Suspects are unpatriotic and working against the interests of the country. This Report has the effect of inciting people to condemn the Lawyers and even possibly to attack them. Some of the cases are still pending and my information suggests that most of those cases referred to in the Report was withdrawn after the Attorney General agreeing with the Petitioners to discharge the suspects in the absence of any evidence.

The names of the Counsel who are appearing in those cases are not
mentioned in the Report. It has also carefully avoided mentioning the Sinhala Lawyers who filed the cases. The Report has singled out the Tamil Lawyers who filed cases. Exposing the Tamil Lawyers in this manner is extremely dangerous and discriminatory.

Civilized citizens agree that every person is presumed innocent, until
proved guilty by a court of law. The so-called terrorists are also
entitled to obtain the services of a Lawyer. Further, ‘Legal Ethics’
requires Lawyers not to decline to appear for a client on the basis of
ethnicity. The recent happenings clearly indicate that there is a
powerful unit operating within establishments to discourage Lawyers in appearing in cases for LTTE suspects.

Your Excellency will recall that about a month ago a group claiming to be “Mahason Balakaya” circulated a ‘Threatening Notice’ intimidating Lawyers. A copy of this Notice is also annexed for Your Excellency’s easy perusal. In late October, Senior Human Rights Lawyer, Mr. J. C. Weliamuna’s house was attacked but there is nothing to suggest that there was a fair Police Investigation into the attack despite a strong request from the Bar Association.

I therefore, request you as the Head of the State, to immediately take
action to remove the Defence Ministry Website Report naming as traitors for appearing for clients which is a fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution. I hope Your Excellency will forthwith instruct those who are responsible for running the Website to desist from intimidating, threatening and inciting against the lawyers for carrying out their professional duties. Finally, let me request Your Excellency to protect those Lawyers whose names have appeared in the website from any form of coercion or physical harassment.

I have no doubt that as a person who stood for Human Rights in late 80’s Your Excellency is sensitive to this issue and intervene forthwith.

Yours Faithfully,

Vasudeva Nanayakkara

CC: 1. Mr. Gotabhaya Rajapakse:- Secretary, Ministry of Defense.
2. Mr. W. D. Dayaratne:- President, Bar Association of Sri Lanka.

STOP THE WAR ON JOURNALISTS IN SRI LANKA!

Click here to download a high resolution image or here to download this statement as a PDF.

Letter to Inspector General of Police

Inspector General of Police,

Police Headquarters,

Colombo 1.

13th February 2008

Dear Sir,

A note alerting you to harassment faced by journalists in Sri Lanka by Civil Defense Committees and members of the Police

The Free Media Movement (FMM) would like to bring your attention significant problems faced by journalists and media workers in Sri Lanka in carrying out their duties. We firmly recognize the need to take into account the prevailing security situation in the country in your deliberations on the protection of all civilians from violence and harm. At the same time, we stress that security measures thus taken must not impinge on and severely undermine fundamental constitutional rights including the freedom of expression, the freedom of movement and other rights that have a bearing on media freedom.

We wish to bring to your attention several cases in this regard. On 12th February 2008, Gemunu Amarasinghe, a well known photo-journalist working for Associated Press (AP) was arrested by civil defense committee members while he was covering students entering Isipathana College, Colombo. He was doing a photo story on the reopening of schools after being closed for a week. He was handed over to the police by members of the Civil Defense Committee and taken to the Narahenpita police station. He was released nearly two hours later after interventions by media institutions and organizations. His arrest and detention meant that he could not carry out his duty as a journalist.

On 23rd January 2008, freelance TV journalist Aravinda Sri Nissanka was arrested by Civil Defense Committee members in Ratmalana, South of Colombo, who threatened to assault him before handing him over to the Mount Lavinia police station. He was covering pedestrians crossing the road without any consideration of colour lights. Police officers verbally abused Aravinda, saying journalists were the cause for all troubles in Sri Lanka and detained him for more than two hours without any reason.

In both these cases the journalists had due media accreditation that those who detained them did not accept as professional IDs. It is very clear that Civil Defense Committees organized by the police do not have any understanding of the rights of media workers or knowledge of media accreditation cards and show a disturbing tendency to resort to verbal abuse and mob violence. What is even more disturbing is the fact that the even the Police do not accept, or even seem to know the existence of journalist accreditation IDs.

We firmly assert that journalists and media workers have a right to gather and disseminate information in the public interest. Any means that directly or inadvertently curtails the rights journalists is tantamount to censorship. We believe the duty of the Police is to protect these rights that are the foundation of democracy. Sadly, in the both cases noted above, the actions of the Police were inimical to their role as defenders of rule of law, giving in as they did to the arbitrary actions of essentially over enthusiastic vigilantes.

More cases brought to the attention of the FMM over the course of this year alone prove this point further. On 12th February in Galle, the police kept 8 journalists in custody for two hours merely because they were covering an unruly incident in a Southern Provincial Council meeting. On the same day policemen posted at the entrance of the Government Secretariat in Batticaloa stopped two Muslim journalists – M. S. M. Noordeen and S. M. M. Mustafa – from entering the Secretariat premises. The policemen went on to verbally abuse the journalists.

We urge you to recall and adhere to the final verdict of the court in a case lodged by the journalist William Fernando of Mannar in January 2008, in which the court warned police to not harass journalists and delete photographs taken by them without due legal process. According to verdict only a court of law has the jurisdiction to confiscate or destroy photographs taken by journalists and media workers.

We urgently and firmly request you to,

• Advise all police personnel on the rights and duties of media workers and journalists
• Alert them to the fact that media accreditation cards exist and are valid IDs for all media workers and journalists
• Be sensitive to the threats against media workers and journalists in Sri Lanka at a time of unprecedented censorship and violence directed against them
• Advise members of all Civil Defense Committees that they should not impede and debar lawful activities of media workers and journalists

We strongly believe that official communication from your office on these matters will create an enabling environment for journalists to carry out their duties in gathering and dissemination information to report in the public interest, including capturing photographs, videos and audio.

We thank you in advance for you urgent attention to the important matters noted in this letter.

Sincerely,

Sunanda Deshapriya

IFJ Asia Pacific: Regional Leaders Joint Statement to President and Government of Sri Lanka

We, the representatives of journalists’ unions and associations across the Asia-Pacific region, meeting in Kuala Lumpur, appeal to President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the Government of Sri Lanka to protect the safety of journalists in Sri Lanka and uphold the rights of the media to report freely.

As Asia-Pacific affiliates and partners of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), jointly fighting for freedom of expression and the safety of journalists in all countries and communities of our region, we are alarmed by the Sri Lankan authorities’ overt ridicule for the principles of free expression and the rights of journalists as Sri Lanka descends toward all-out war.

Recent actions by authorities indicate an irresponsible and dangerous disregard for the rights of journalists and media institutions to report freely and without threat of violence. Cases in point include recent public statements by Sri Lanka’s Army Commander and Defence Secretary calling for media censorship, the judicial enforcement of criminal defamation and the prosecution of leading media institutions for “critical reportage”.

We condemn in the strongest terms the disrespect and outright physical aggression shown by members of the Government and senior public officials toward journalists, media institutions and the right to freedom of speech.

Professional media has a duty and a responsibility to critique the central issues in Sri Lanka’s war, to expose corruption and to unearth underlying interests of warring factions. However, journalists and media institutions in Sri Lanka are under extreme pressure to comply with the Government’s propaganda on conflict and peace if they want to avoid targeted hate speech and rabid public condemnation. Official censorship and self-censorship are fuelling a dangerous cycle of misinformation and conflict, and journalists are finding it increasingly difficult to act in the public interest.

We are extremely concerned for the safety of our colleagues in Sri Lanka. Journalists and their leaders are directly in the line of fire, whether they are reporting on events in conflict zones or bearing the brunt of the hostility of senior officials and others displeased with independent critical commentary.

We condemn the prevailing culture of impunity in Sri Lanka, which is exemplified by acts of physical and verbal abuse perpetrated by senior authorities targeting the media. 

We advise the President and the Government that the failure to bring to account the perpetrators of physical and psychological violence against journalists and to rein in the anti-media activities of government members and other officials sends a message that the they have no respect for the rights and safety of journalists and for the range of all rights set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The anti-media sentiment expressed by officials at various levels underscores a widespread failure to understand that free expression and a strong, independent and critical media are hallmarks of a successful – and peaceful – democracy.

We demand that the President and the Government desist immediately from implicitly or explicitly inciting violence against journalists and media institutions, by way of death threats, intimidation, physical harm and the use of language that incites hate and drives conflict. The Government must put an end to the culture of impunity, including acting against criminal gangs that target journalists.

While we urge the President and the Government to lead the way, we demand that other groups in Sri Lanka, including paramilitary groups and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), also desist from committing or inciting violence against journalists. 

We strongly support our colleagues in the Federation of Media Employee’s Trade Unions (FMETU), the Free Media Movement (FMM), the Sri Lanka Working Journalists’ Association (SLWJA), the Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum (SLMMF) and the Sri Lanka Tamil Journalists’ Alliance (SLTJA) in their demands that the Government urgently implement the following measures.

Halt all threats, harassment, abductions and attacks against journalists, media workers and media institutions perpetrated by all parties to the conflict, in particular on, but not limited to, the Tamil-language media.
 

Refrain from all interference in editorial independence, including the use of economic or legal sanctions, such as restrictions on newsprint, the indiscriminate use of search and seizure powers by the tax authorities or the freezing of assets, to interfere in the publication of a newspaper.
 

Cease using informal means, such as direct calls to newsrooms and editorial offices, to influence media coverage and editorial lines.
 

Desist from the dangerous and irresponsible practice of publicly vilifying journalists and media workers in a manner likely to endanger their lives and those of their families and invite the authorities, political parties and community leaders to demonstrate a clear and unambiguous rejection of the targeting of media by incitement and language likely to excite hostility.
 

Amend or revoke all Sri Lankan legislation, regulations and powers, particularly the emergency regulations of August 2005, the Prevention of Terrorism and Specified Terrorist Activities Regulations of December 2006, the Official Secrets Act, Press Council Laws and broadcasting laws that fail to meet international standards on press freedom and freedom of expression.
 

Signed by leaders of the following organisations, in Kuala Lumpur for the regional meeting of IFJ Asia-Pacific:

• Aliansi Jurnalis Independen (AJI)- Indonesia
• Afghan Independent Journalists Association (AIJA)
• All India Newspaper Employees Federation (AINEF)
• Association of Taiwan Journalists (ATJ)
• Cambodian Association for Protection of Journalists (CAPJ)
• Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union, New Zealand (EPMU)
• Federation of Media Employee’s Trade Unions (FMETU)
• Free Media Movement (FMM)
• Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ)
• Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA)
• IFJ Asia Pacific
• Indian Journalists Union (IJU)
• National Union of Journalists, Malaysia (NUJM)
• Media Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA)- Australia
• Nepal Press Union (NPU)
• National Union of Journalists (India) (NUJI)
• National Union of Journalists, Nepal (NUJN)
• National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP)
• Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ)
• Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association (SLWJA)

For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +612 9333 0919

CPJ fears for Sri Lankan journalists as cease-fire ends

January 9, 2008

His Excellency Mahinda Rajapaksa
President of Sri Lanka and Minister of Defense, Public Security, Law and Order
Presidential Secretariat
Colombo 1
Sri Lanka

Via facsimile: +94 11 2430 590

Dear President Rajapaksa,

As your government prepares to withdraw from its 2002 cease-fire agreement with Tamil separatists, the Committee to Protect Journalists is greatly concerned by reports that members of your government have tried to intimidate journalists in the Sri Lankan media in recent weeks. In at least two instances, an official used the word “traitor” against a journalist, which is decidedly inflammatory in a country that has seen civil war rage since 1983.

We fear that when the end of the cease-fire officially goes into effect on January 16 and fighting resumes, your government will seek to further intimidate Sri Lankan journalists who might report critically on activities of the government or the Sri Lankan military. These fears are not unfounded, given recent incidents such as these:

At a press conference on January 7, Minister of Social Services and Social Welfare K. N. Douglas Devananda called the well-respected senior journalist Sri Ranga Jeyarathnam a “traitor” and accused him of being in league with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Minister Devaada made his remarks because he was angry about a documentary Jeyarathnam had aired on his program on the private Shakthi TV channel about the assassination of Tamil opposition politician T. Maheshvaran on New Year’s Day, it was widely reported in Sri Lanka’s media.

On January 2, in an interview published in the state-controlled Sinhala daily Dinamina, the commander of the Sri Lankan army, Maj. Gen. Sarath Fonseka, called unnamed journalists “traitors” and referred to the “treachery” of the media. According to a translation of Fonseka’s remarks supplied by the Sri Lankan media rights group Free Media Movement, he said: “The biggest obstacle [to fighting Tamil separatists] is the unpatriotic media. I am not blaming all journalists. I know 99 percent of media and journalists are patriotic and doing their jobs properly. But unfortunately, we have a small number of traitors among the journalists. They are the biggest obstacle. All other obstacles we can surmount.”

We wrote to you on October 2, 2007, about written and verbal attacks that appeared on the Ministry of Defense’s Web site about Iqbal Athas, consultant editor and defense correspondent for The Sunday Times of Sri Lanka. The accusations effectively equated Athas’ journalism with terrorism, after he reported on setbacks the army faced in fighting with Tamil secessionists. The lengthy attack on Athas’ reporting accused him of “insulting our soldiers’ sacrifices” and claims his reporting “has been assisting in the psychological operations of the LTTE terrorists.” The article claims that “promoting terrorism had become a lucrative business” for Athas. Athas was awarded CPJ’s International Press Freedom Award in 1994.

On December 27, Minister of Labor Mervyn de Silva accompanied by a large group of men, stormed the state-run television station Sri Lanka Rupavahini Cooperation and assaulted the station’s news director, T.M.G. Chandrasekara. The station’s staff held the minister and his supporters while police were summoned, and videotaped the minister’s apology for his actions on camera. De Silva was apparently angry because a speech he had delivered the previous day was been fully reported by the station. The government has made no mention of the ugly incident, nor has it apologized to the station’s staff for the behavior of one of its cabinet ministers.

As Sri Lanka apparently prepares to resume military action against the Tamil separatists, we call on you and members of your government to respect the vital role journalists play in an open democratic society. Verbal, written, and physical assaults on journalists are attacks on the very fabric of a democratic society. We call on you to make to ensure that members of your government refrain from such acts of intimidation.

Sincerely,

Joel Simon
Executive Director

Access this letter on the CPJ website here and more reports on Sri Lanka by the CPJ here.