Journalists demand answers to killings

Hundreds of journalists and media rights activists protested today to demand Sri Lanka’s new government start a fresh investigation into the abduction and killing of a prominent ethnic Tamil journalist 11 years ago, during the country’s civil war.

Those demonstrating in front of Colombo’s main railroad station said Dharmeratnam Sivaram was targeted because of uncompromising coverage of political and military matters.

Media rights activist Lasantha Ruhunage said even 11 years after, the law enforcement authorities have failed to find the killers and “therefore they should start a fresh investigation and bring the culprits before law.”

Sivaram was found dead on April 29, 2005, in the capital, Colombo, after being abducted the previous evening.

The government of President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe (Pictured at right with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin in Colombo last year), has promised to implement a compensation plan for 44 journalists and other media workers killed under the former government, but Ruhunage said “more than compensation, the attacks on journalists, media workers and media institutions should be properly investigated and those responsible for the attacks should be punished, in order to ensure justice to the media community.”(AP)