Journalists and media workers - The
casualty list
Journalists and media workers killed -
(11)
Subramanium Sukirtharajah of Sudar Oli
in Trincomalee, January 24, 2007
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Subash Chandrabose - Editor, Nilam in
Vavuniya
April 16, 2007
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Suresh Kumar and Ranjith Kumar of
Uthayan in Jaffna, May 3, 2007
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Lakmal de Silva abducted from
Boralesgamuwa and found dead 3 km away
on July 2, 2007
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Mariathus Manojanraj, newspaper seller
on his way to
Jaffna
killed by a mine explosion
August 1, 2007
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Sathasivam Baskaran, distributor shot
dead in Jaffna on August 16, 2007
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Sinnathamby Sivamaharajah, Managing
Director, Namadu Eelanadu in
Jaffna
August 21, 2007
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
P Devakumar, MTV/Sirasa/Shakthi TV
Jaffna Correspondent hacked to death in
Jaffna on May 28, 2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Rashmi Mohamed, killed in a suicide
bomb attack during a news coverage in
Anuradhapura together with 27 others on
October 6,2008 - matter before court
Lasantha Wickrematunge, Editor of The
Sunday Leader and Correspondent for TIME
and OUTLOOK, Attidiya on January 8, 2009
- matter before court
Assaulted - (27)
Tissa Ravindra Bandara of Rivira and
family by the Homagama police in civvies
on January 6, 2007
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Ajith Seneviratne of Haraya and
Gnanasiri Kottigoda of BBC Sinhala
Service in Nugegoda on January 9,2007
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
K. P. Mohan of Thinakural in Fort on
January 28, 2007
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Victor Somaweera stabbed in Bingiriya
on January 10, 2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
U. S. A. Bandara of Sirasa while
covering the Moneragala bus bomb
explosion in Okkampitiya on January 16,
2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Lal Hemantha Mawalage of SLRC in
Athurugiriya on
January 25, 2008
- case pending before court.
Suhaib M. Kasim of Thinakaran in
Colombo on January 28, 2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Pankaja Sankalpa of ITN assaulted by a
Buddhist monk in Matara on February 28,
2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
M. I. Rahmatullah, Editor of Vaara
Ureikal Katankudi on May 9, 2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
J L Jawfer Khan, free lance journalist
beaten in Katankudi on May 19, 2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Sirasa TV crew assaulted and camera
smashed in Kiribathgoda on May 19, 2008
- No arrests made so far.
Keith Noyar, Deputy Editor and Defence
Correspondent of The Nation abducted and
assaulted in Dehiwala on May 22, 2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
M H C Jalees, assaulted and camera
snatched in Katankudi on June 5, 2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Namal Perera of SLPI and Mahendra
Ratnaweera assaulted and vehicle
attacked in Narahenpita on June 30, 2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Yohan Perera and Pradeep Dilrukshana
of Daily Mirror assaulted by UDA
officials in
Glennie Street
covering demolition of homes prior to
SAARC Summit on July 18, 2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Thushara Saliya Ranawaka and Waruna
Sampath of Sirasa TV assaulted by goon
squads of Labour Minister Mervyn Silva
in Kelaniya on August 4, 2008 - Case
pending in High Court.
Yamuna Harshini and Janaka Galappatty
of Lankadeepa together with TV
journalist
Dushantha Manoj assaulted by Colombo
University Medical Faculty students
within university premises during a
student demonstration coverage on August
28, 2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Unnamed Batticaloa journalist
assaulted during a special police curfew
in Batticaloa on November 29, 2008
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Upali Tennakoon, Editor Rivira attacked
by goons on motorbikes in Gampaha
Abducted (4)
Subramaniam Ramachandran on Thinakural
and Valampuri in Vadamarachchi on
February 15,2007. Feared dead.
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Vadivel Nimalrajah, proofreader of
Uthayan in Jaffna on November 17, 2007
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Thiruchelvam Thirukumaran in Dehiwala
on June 22, 2008 and released the
following day.
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Nadarajah Guruparan in Mt. Lavinia on
August 28, 2006 and released the next
day.
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Arrested (10)
Arthur Wamanan of The Sunday Leader in
Mt. Lavinia on October 24, 2007 - matter
before Mt. Lavinia Magistrate's Court.
J.S. Tissainayagam, editor of Outreach
website in Colombo TID office on March
7, 2007 - in TID custody. FR before
Supreme Court.
Asoka Fernando of The Sunday Leader
arrested and granted bail on November
28, 2007.
K. Kumarathas of Uthayan in Jaffna on
June 23, 2007.
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Nagalingam Kennyoodsan, ITN producer
in Dehiwala on August 26, 2008.
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
Gemunu Amarasinghe of AP by the Civil
Defence Committee in
Colombo
5 on February 12, 2008 and released
shortly.
S. Sivakumar, FMM spokesperson arrested
by TID on March 8, 2008 and released.
Indian journalist Ali Ekram at
Galle
cricket stadium while on news coverage
on July 30, 2008.
Pinsiri Perera of Derana TV in
Dehiwala on November 30, 2008.
Status - Police refuse to divulge
information.
Assumption - Investigations inactive.
A.R. Vaamaloshanan, General Manager,
by the TID on November 2008 - released
with no charges framed.
Shot at
Radhika Thevakumar of Thinakaran
Batticaloa Correspondent shot and
injured on September 8, 2008
Knifed
Ranjani Aluthge, SLRC Librarian knifed
on March 5, 2008
Callous indifference poses fresh threat
- IFJ
The International Federation of
Journalists (IFJ) on Wednesday (4)
issued its report on the killings of
journalists in 2008 with a warning that
2009 could be the deadliest year yet for
journalists. A wave of killings in the
first days of the new year have
undermined hopes that the falling death
toll recorded in 2008 was the first sign
of a change in the pattern of killings
which have risen dramatically in recent
years.
"The welcome relief brought about by the
decline in the killings of journalists
in 2008 has been short lived," said IFJ
General Secretary, Aidan White launching
the report entitled Perilous
Assignments: Journalists And Media
Personnel Killed In 2008 . "Ten
colleagues died in January alone and
from all regions of the world either in
targeted killing or as a direct result
of their work."
The IFJ recorded 109 deaths of
journalists and media staff in 2008,
marking a decrease from the 2007 all
time record of 175 deaths.
The IFJ says that the international
community still needs to step up to
confront the challenge of impunity in
the killing of journalists. "We often
see politicians, even in democratic
countries showing callous indifference
to the threats posed by attacks on
journalists and media. That must end,"
said White.
According to the report,
Iraq
remains the most dangerous countries
despite a substantial drop of media
casualties from 65 in 2007 to 16 last
year. The other dangerous zones were
Mexico and India with 10 deaths each.
The IFJ says the culture of impunity for
crimes against journalists and the
systematic failure to respect the rights
of journalists, deny journalists the
protection they are entitled to in their
work, especially during armed conflict.
Extracts from Colombo Declaration
The participants of the SAARC
Journalists Summit IV on Freedom of
Media in Conflict Situations adopted the
Colombo Declaration on August 2, 2008
expressing concern over attacks on the
freedom of the media and media persons
including murder, deliberate attacks,
abductions, hostage taking, harassment,
intimidation, legal arrest and detention
and incitement of violence against them
due to their professional work in the
conflict zones and beyond the South
Asian region.
It called for demonstration of tolerance
to dissent and practice pluralism, as
per UNESCO's resolution 29 for the
member states to uphold their
obligations to prevent, investigate and
punish crimes against journalists, as
per Security Council Resolution No. 1738
for parties to armed conflict to fulfill
their obligations towards journalists
under international law including the
need to prevent impunity for crimes
against them and to ensure their safety.
Further, the Colombo Declaration
expressed concern over the deteriorating
situation in Sri Lanka and stated, "As
in the 1980s, the mass media now suffers
from regular assassination, assault and
intimidation of media personnel and
proprietors while media enterprises have
been forced to shut down by means of
state originated restrictions on holding
companies or outright bans."
It called on the Sri Lankan government:
"to swiftly complete the investigations
into a number of killings and abductions
of journalists and to remove all
restrictions and stop intimidation of
media persons and media outlets."
Government's duty to end culture of
impunity
- Dr. Saravanamuttu
Executive Director, Center for Policy
Alternatives (CPA), Dr. Paikiyasothy
Saravanamuttu said the seriousness of
the government's commitment to human
rights rests in its willingness and
ability to reverse the culture of
impunity.
"In particular, its credibility is
seriously at stake because it hasn't
done anything of any effect with regard
to the killings and attacks on media
institutions and personnel. At the end
of the day, the regime has the primary
responsibility for the protection of the
human rights of all. It has to commit
itself with as much seriousness to
fighting the terrorism against democracy
in the south as it is doing in the
north."
Government has ordered impartial
investigations
- Yapa
Media Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa
claims that the government has taken all
possible actions to revive the stalled
investigations into the killings,
abductions and assaults on media
personnel in the country since 2006.
He told The Sunday Leader that every
step had been taken to conduct the
investigations impartially.
"There are no loopholes in these
investigations and the government has
instructed the police to ensure that
steps are taken to apprehend the
miscreants," added Yapa.
However when told that no arrests had
been made so far in respect of these
killings, abductions, assaults and that
the police have failed to arrest any
person in the arson attacks on media
institutions, Yapa said that people
cannot be arrested merely on suspicion
and there had to be sufficient proof to
arrest suspects.
"As a responsible government President
Mahinda Rajapakse as the Defence
Minister has instructed the Police
Department to hold impartial inquiries
into such killings or abductions at the
earliest and to bring them to book. But
since I do not have a detailed report on
the investigation process now I am not
in a position to divulge as to why the
delays are," said Yapa.
Investigations draw a blank
Most of the police stations when
contacted had a standard reply to offer.
They refused to divulge information in
connection with the investigations and
requested this newspaper to make a
written appeal to the Police Head
Quarters Colombo first and if approval
is granted, to visit the respective
police stations with such obtained
permission.
Send me the list
- Police Spokesperson
Police Spokesperson SSP Ranjith
Gunasekera when queried on the progress
made on the various killings, abductions
and assaults of media personnel in the
country since 2006, said he could
furnish the details on a future date if
the list of names and the dates are
provided.
"Since all these incidents have occurred
in 2006, 2007 and 2008 I am not in a
position to tell the status of each
investigation, but if the list of names
and the dates are given, I could contact
the relevant police stations and inform
The Sunday Leader of the progress made,"
added SSP Gunasekera.
