(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ is outraged by the 14 March 1999 abduction and beating of Sri Lal Priyantha, the defense correspondent of the weekly “Lakbima” newspaper in Colombo. Priyantha, who is known for his reporting on corruption in the military and the police, was kidnapped from his boarding house at approximately 4:00 a.m. by ten men […]
(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ is outraged by the 14 March 1999 abduction and beating of
Sri Lal Priyantha, the defense correspondent of the weekly “Lakbima”
newspaper in Colombo.
Priyantha, who is known for his reporting on corruption in the military and
the police, was kidnapped from his boarding house at approximately 4:00 a.m.
by ten men wearing black hoods over their faces and carrying automatic
weapons. The men ransacked Priyantha’s room, blindfolded him, and forced him
into a vehicle. He was taken to a cemetery about a mile from his home in the
Nugegoda district of Colombo. There he was beaten, stripped of his clothing,
and tied to a tree. About five hours later, he was found by a passerby and
taken to a hospital where he remains under observation.
Colleagues of Priyantha believe the attack is related to his work. Bandula
Padmakumara, “Lakbima”‘s editor, told the “Daily News of Colombo”: “He
[Priyantha] was writing a very comprehensive defence column in which he
highlighted the corruption in the military establishment. It could have been
anybody who had been affected by these articles responsible for this.”
Journalists in Colombo say that Priyantha had been concerned about his
safety for more than a month before the attack. Last week, Priyantha told a
radio interviewer in Colombo that he had been receiving death threats
because of his writing on national defense.
CPJ deplores the attack on Priyantha as an offense against press freedom.
Such assaults have a chilling affect on the ability of the media to report
freely on sensitive issues. CPJ notes that the Sri Lankan government has
called for an investigation into the incident, but in the past, attacks on
Sri Lankan journalists have frequently gone unpunished. In CPJ’s opinion, if
those who use violence against journalists are allowed to do so with
impunity, it undermines the fabric of democracy and calls into question the
Sri Lankan government’s commitment to preserve the civil and political
rights of its people.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to the president:
pursue those responsible for this vicious crime and to bring them to justice
timely manner
Appeals To
Her Excellency Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga
President of Sri Lanka
Colombo, Sri Lanka
Fax: + 94 1 446 657
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
