Protesters disrupt workshop for journalists

A press workshop in Colombo for Tamil journalists was disrupted on 26 July 2014 after protesters gathered outside Sri Lanka’s Press Institute, where the workshop was to take place. This was the 3rd training for northern journalists which was disrupted in just 2 months  a journalist said.

The security forces stopped and interrogated a group of 11 Tamil journalists travelling from Jaffna by road to a press workshop in Colombo on Friday evening for over six hours, before releasing the journalists and detaining the driver for further questioning.

Eleven Tamil journalists travelling to the workshop were stopped and questioned by security forces, whilst the driver of the vehicle was detained. Questioning the occupants, officers attempted to search the vehicle, only allowing the group to continue the journey after they had identified themselves as journalists and informed the police of the details of the workshop they were due to attend.The journalists, Venthan, G. Sabthasangari, Pontasa, Paskaran, Kajeepan, Hamsan, Nitharsan, Raveenthirarasa, Thayabaran, Parameswaran and Newman, were travelling to a workshop arranged by a Colombo based media organisation together with a network of journalists based in Jaffna, the Jaffna Press Club (JPC), on digital security.

Last month, a workshop in Colombo for Tamil journalists from the North-East was disrupted after protesters, that included members of the Buddhist monk group, Bodu Bala Sena (BBS)  gathered outside the hotel, where the event was due to take place.

Meanwhile