(FMM/IFEX) – The following is a 24 March 2007 FMM press release: Gasping for freedom: Media in Sri Lanka Report submitted by the Free Media Movement for the third session of the UN Human Rights Council, March 2007 The Free Media Movement (FMM) of Sri Lanka addresses the 4th session of the UN Human Rights […]
(FMM/IFEX) – The following is a 24 March 2007 FMM press release:
Gasping for freedom: Media in Sri Lanka
Report submitted by the Free Media Movement for the third session of the UN Human Rights Council, March 2007
The Free Media Movement (FMM) of Sri Lanka addresses the 4th session of the UN Human Rights Council in order to draw attention to the deteriorating situation of media freedom and the freedom of expression in Sri Lanka.
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In October 2006, in response to the growing crisis in media freedom and freedom of expression, a group of individuals and organizations working on these issues organized a visit to Sri Lanka, forming an International Press Freedom and Freedom of Expression Mission to Sri Lanka. This mission spoke out in support of free media and of the rights of journalists and made, inter alia, the following recommendations that the FMM stresses the importance of urgently implementing:
– Immediately halt all threats, harassment, abductions and attacks against media practitioners and outlets currently being perpetrated by all parties to the conflict;
– Undertake complete, transparent and timely investigations into the murder of media practitioners and death threats issued against media practitioners and their families;
– Halt the dangerous and irresponsible practice of publicly vilifying media practitioners;
– Reverse action already undertaken that restricts press freedom and freedom of expression and refrain from any moves to introduce any form of direct or indirect censorship.
The FMM calls on the Council to fulfil its mandate by supporting the government of Sri Lanka to address the severe deterioration of media freedom and the mounting challenges to freedom of expression in the country by emphasising the need to return to the Rule of Law and to democratic governance that includes tolerance of dissenting opinions.
Accordingly, FMM wishes to bring to the attention of the Council the following key features of the current media landscape in Sri Lanka, in support of our observations and recommendations noted above.
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From 2006 on, the safety of journalists in Sri Lanka has been under increasing threat. Across the island, but particularly in the conflict-affected areas of the North and the East of the island, armed actors, including the Government’s Armed Forces, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the Karuna faction and various other paramilitary groups, prevent journalists from collecting and disseminating information.
Unable to work, under threat and in fear for their lives, journalists find it increasingly difficult to continue working under conditions of extreme danger and instability brought about by the renewed violence in Sri Lanka.
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A disturbing culture of impunity protects those who threaten media freedom. Despite the statement on 6 March 2007 by Inspector General of Police Victor Perera, who announced that the police had arrested over 400 persons since September 2006 on charges of abduction, including ex-soldiers, serving, soldiers, police officers and underworld gangs and other organized elements – it is unclear whether the police will prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law sans political interference and whether these arrests included suspects of acts of violence against media personnel and journalists over the past year.
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As noted in the FMM statement of 20 February 2007, the FMM again notes with great concern the growth of hate speech and incitement to violence by political forces such as the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) and the National Movement Against Terrorism (NMAT). Champika Ranawaka, a member of both these entities and now Minister for Environment and Natural Resources in the incumbent government, publicly advocated the brutal suppression of democratic dissent, even through extrajudicial ways and means, in an interview he gave to a newspaper. To date, the government has not distanced itself from the minister’s statement. Coupled with the culture of impunity noted above, this open and brazen targeting of journalists, peace and rights activists by those holding high public office is a disturbing trend in need of immediate redress.
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Ms. Maunasamy Parameshwaree (23), a female freelance Tamil journalist working for the Sinhala weekly “Mawbima”, was arrested by the Terrorist Investigations Unit on 21 November 2006, detained for four months and then released on 22 March 2007 without a single official charge made against her, even in the face of widespread condemnation by local and international media freedom organisations. She was subject to a persistent campaign of hate by government ministers, select media and ultra-nationalist voices, who blatantly paraded lies and baseless allegations in a reprehensible attempt to mould public opinion against her. On 13 March, the accounts of Standard Newspapers (Pvt) Ltd., the publishers of “Mawbima”, were frozen under instructions by the government. As noted in an FMM statement released the same day, this action clearly shows a pattern of systematic intimidation and suppression of any media institution or individual that does not toe the line of the government.
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The human rights violations that take place as detailed above are facilitated by the existence of the Prevention of Terrorism and Specified Terrorist Activities Regulations, which pose a serious threat to democratic governance and fundamental rights in Sri Lanka. Coupled with the draconian Emergency Regulations, the anti-terrorism regulations have already resulted in journalists and media personnel being arrested, detained and questioned by the police. For example, on 5 February 2007, three trade unionists were abducted from three separate locations in the suburbs of Colombo. There were protests against their abduction and disappearances; three days later the government announced that they had been arrested under the Emergency Regulations for suspected ties to the LTTE and openly vilified the FMM for issuing a statement against the extrajudicial abduction of the suspects. A news report, flagrantly distorting the FMM press release, still exists on the Ministry of Defence website, despite a public letter calling for a correction.
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Given that, from 2001 to July 2006, aside from a single Sinhala journalist, every single journalist and media person murdered in Sri Lanka was Tamil, the FMM is gravely concerned about the security and safety of Tamil-language journalists in Sri Lanka. The systematic silencing of the moderate voices in the Tamil media is a grave indicator of the deterioration of freedom of expression. Tamil journalists, especially in the north and east, have been subject to intimidation and harassment on a daily basis by the security forces and by armed groups. Certain Tamil newspapers have been set on fire and distributors forbidden to sell them. Newspaper offices have been looted, burned, vandalised and bombed. The increased violence and the abductions and disappearances, with total impunity, make it impossible for journalists to conduct their professional duties. The scarcity of essential items that has gripped the northern peninsula of Jaffna has had a fatal impact on newspaper publishing and journalism there. The non-availability of newsprint has reduced some newspapers to publishing a few copies of their paper, which they put up on the walls of the towns in the north for public consumption.
By measures such as extending an invitation for the Special Rapporteur on the Freedom of Expression to visit Sri Lanka and inviting the office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights to expand its presence in Sri Lanka, the government of Sri Lanka can reaffirm and demonstrably strengthen its commitment to human rights and face the process of periodic review with no reservations.
Recognising that all parties in the conflict have committed attacks against the media, the FMM also calls upon the Council to strongly condemn all such attacks committed by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Government Security Forces, the Karuna faction and various other paramilitary and armed groups that threaten media freedom and pose a serious challenge to strengthening human rights in Sri Lanka.
