International mission calls for end to surveillance of journalists in northern Sri Lanka

Challenges for press freedom in North remain, despite clear improvement after presidential vote

Feb 28, 2015

In this February 2015 photo, bullet holes from a 2006 attack remain covering the walls of Uthayan, a Jaffna-based Tamil-language daily that has been the target of numerous violent - and unsolved - reprisals in recent years. Photo: IPI

Continued surveillance of journalists and media organisations in the north of Sri Lanka must cease, members of an international media mission to Sri Lanka said today.

Surveillance, monitoring and following of journalists are incompatible with a free media and the principles of open government that should underpin the 100 day reform process. The international media mission includes delegates from the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), the International Press Institute (IPI) and the International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX).

The mission is in Sri Lanka at the invitation of the Free Media Movement (FMM), which is also facilitating the visit. The international delegation began its trip with a two-day day visit to Jaffna and is currently conducting meetings in Colombo, the Sri Lankan capital.

All journalists in the Jaffna area acknowledged that there have been no cases of overt violence since the Jan. 8 elections and that there has been an apparent reduction in threats. However, there remain significant challenges to press freedom, including:

· Self-censorship due to uncertainty about the political future of the country,

· Restrictions on access to information, and

· Continued surveillance and monitoring of journalists

Despite the Sri Lankan government’s welcome commitment to right to information legislation, there appears to have been tightening of bureaucratic processes that make access to information more difficult and can lead to significant misunderstandings. There remain significant concerns about the failure to address the impunity surrounding attacks on journalists. Since 2000, 12 media workers have been killed in the north of Sri Lanka and four are missing, presumed dead.

However, no person has been held responsible for any of these deaths. As part of the reform process, it is essential that full and open investigations are held into all these cases. Newspaper organisations also need to do more to recognise the role they can play in providing a safe and secure working environment. All media organisations should commit to working together to provide necessary training to entrench professional journalism and the values of free media in the north of Sri Lanka.