Media urges Ban Ki-moon to protect SL journalists

Leading media organisations spread across the world, in an appeal to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, have urged him to pressurise the Sri Lankan Government into respecting the UN Security Council Resolution 1738 on journalism in conflict zones and put an end to all actions which undermine the independence and safety of the news community.

The appeal, sent out by 29 IFEX members and other organisations, alerted the UN Secretary General to several statements made by the government and military which “put journalists in grave danger.”

“Under terms of UNSCR 1738, on the protection of journalists in conflict, we write to draw your attention to the alarming situation in Sri Lanka, where statements associated with the government and the military have, in our view, put journalists in grave danger,” the letter stated

In commentaries published on its website on June 5, the Defence Ministry labelled journalists critical of the war effort against Tamil rebels as “enemies of the state” and said it would take “all necessary measures to stop this journalistic treachery.”
In addition to news organisations, the Ministry singled out for criticism the Free Media Movement (FMM), a prominent local rights group.

This followed comments last January by Army Commander Major General Sarath Fonseka, who labelled some journalists as traitors. His statement came in the wake of a strike by the Sri Lankan Air Force against the official Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) radio station, which killed at least three editorial staff the previous November, the media organisations said in the letter.

“The undersigned organisations, all of whom fully support the UN Security Council Resolution 1738 on journalism in conflict zones, condemn these statements, which risk encouraging those who have used extreme violence against journalists and other news professionals in the country,” the letter said.

The letter went on to say, “The global survey of news media casualties, presented to you by the International News Safety Institute last December, placed Sri Lanka 14th out of more than 70 countries where journalists died trying to do their jobs over the past decade. Journalists continue to work there in conditions of fear and harassment. As you know, Resolution 1738 urges all parties in situations of armed conflict to respect the professional independence and rights of journalists, media professionals and associated personnel.”

“We seek your support in urging all United Nations member states to respect Resolution 1738 in letter and in spirit, and specifically request your help in persuading the Government of Sri Lanka to withdraw these statements and immediately stop all actions which undermine the independence and safety of the news community,” the letter added.

The signatories included the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI) in Cairo, ARTICLE 19 in London, Centre for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) in Manila, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Freedom House in New York, Brussels-based International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and International News Safety Institute, Brussels, the International Press Institute (IPI) in Vienna, the London based Index on Censorship, the Colombo-based Free Media Movement (FMM) and World Association of Newspapers (WAN) in Paris.