Journalists from the North and South in Sri Lanka have been accustomed to death threats, harassment and sometimes assault. And continuous pressure on media institutions and individuals were prominent during the previous government. This led to serious threats on the Freedom of Expression. Even after the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government came to power they have not taken any progressive steps to end impunity or to bring delayed justice to these significant cases reported.
Featured image is of a Tamil journalist from the North Gunasundaram Kuhanathan, Editor of Uthayan News Paper, Jaffna (after the attack on the Uthayan office).
April 2015, Colombo Fort: At a protest demanding Justice for Sivaram’s murder, After 10 years forcing the government to act on the murderers. Taraki Sivaram or Dharmeratnam Sivaram [11 August 1959 – 28 April 2005] was a popular Tamil journalist of Sri Lanka. He was kidnapped by four men in a white van on 28 April 2005, in front of the Bambalapitya police station. His body was found the next day in the district of Himbulala, near the Parliament of Sri Lanka. He had been beaten and shot in the head.23 January 2015 Protest held at Colombo Fort marking 5 years without justice for the Missing of Prageeth Eknaligoda. Prageeth Eknaligoda is a cartoonist, political analyst and journalist. He was reported missing on January 24, 2010 – two days before the presidential polls in Sri Lanka, while working as a freelance journalist for the website Lankaenews.com.Members of his family believe he has been abducted by pro-government supporters because he was investigating the alleged use of chemical weapons, charges that was denied by the government of Sri Lanka.
January 2015 Black January at Viharamahadevi Park Vigil calling to bring forward the killers of Lasantha Wickramathunga in front of the law. Lasantha Manilal Wickrematunge (5 April 1958 – 8 January 2009) was a Sri Lankan journalist, politician and human rights activist who was assassinated in January 2009. Wickrematunge was the founder of The Sunday Leader and Leader Publications Wickrematunge’s assassination caused a national frenzy being the country’s most influential media personnel and one of the biggest political figures and raised questions about freedom of expression in the country. Wickrematunge’s murder was widely condemned across the world.
January 2014 Jaffna, At a protest organized by the Free Media Movement and the Journalists from Jaffna. There were lot of attacks, killings and threats took place against journalists during the above period in north. But violence against journalists from the North, working in the Tamil language, has remained forgotten in the search for justice, something they have long been denied, until now. This was a protest against such brutal attacks and killings.
