“Karuna Faction Running Its Writ in Pottuvil”

Daily Mirror editor receives serious threat from Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary News Highlights of the week

Sri Lanka`s Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa threatened the editor of a leading English daily on Tuesday, saying the paper`s coverage of actions of the Karuna Group had angered the Army-backed paramilitaries, a media watchdog said. Mr. Gothabaya, brother of President Mahinda Rajapakse, had Tuesday morning telephoned Ms. Champika Liyanarachchi, editor of the Daily Mirror to say she should not be surprised if the Karuna Group turned its violence against her and if so, she shouldn`t expect government protection, the Free Media Movement (FMM) said

In an article titled `Karuna faction running its writ in Pottuvil` on Monday, the Daily Mirror reported the paramilitary group is creating havoc in the Muslim-dominated Pottuvil town in Ampara, moving around freely with weapons in government-controll ed areas while law enforcement authorities are allegedly turning a blind eye.

The Defence Secretary had told Ms. Liyanarachchi her paper`s story had angered the Karuna faction and, furthermore, was written against the Government, the FMM said.

In the eventuality of Karuna Group violence against her, Mr. Gotabhaya had said Ms. Liyanarachchi should not expect any security from the government to protect her, the FMM said. Muslim Guardian publishes below the news items and articles appeared in various sources in this regard for its valuable readers to decide.

Government of Sri Lanka vehemently rejected the claim and published a statement on this regard. According to the statement;

Defence Secretary Denies Threatening Media Personnel
Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa vehemently denies the accusations levelled against him by certain media movements that he had threatened an editor of a local English newspaper. Speaking to defence.lk website, the Defence Secretary said that this is yet another calumniation made against him by LTTE proxies annoyed by the effective anti-terror campaign carried out by the Ministry of Defence.

While admitting that he had had a telephone conversation with the said newspaper editor yesterday, the Defence Secretary said that it was just a frank exchange of ideas on two controversial articles published on the said newspaper. He further stated that he did not make any threat to the said editor than openly expressing his views and was surprised how certain media had exaggerated the issue.

Speaking further Defence secretary said, that freedom of expression should not only be limited to media personnel, but others should also have the right express their views on the professional work of any media person.

"In my view the two articles I have highlighted during my conversation with the said editor may be detrimental to the national security. One of them aimed at promoting racial hatred between Tamil and Muslim people living in the East and the other was trying to damage the good image of the Security Forces. I do not find any reason to refrain from expressing my view to the editor of the newspaper that publishes such articles" the defence secretary said.

"I also think it is my responsibility to do so, because the racism is the greatest threat to our society and the nation's solidarity. It is the duty of the press to promote unity and cohesion in the hearts and minds of people; not to publish material tending to support such harmful ideologies, he added.

Finally, the Secretary Defence expressed his concerns over the intolerant behaviour shown by some media personnel at constructive criticism. "None can claim free from biased or prejudice unless he or she cannot stand constructive criticism" he concluded.

However pro-LTTE website Tamilnet also had given a priority on this issue and says;

SL President Pooh-Poohs Gothabaya Death Threat
Before leaving for Italy Wednesday, Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapaksa telephoned Ms. Champika Liyanarachchi, editor of the Daily Mirror, in a bid to defuse the controversy that has erupted over the death threats she received Tuesday from Defence Secretary Gotathabaya Rajapaksa. The President had suggested to Ms. Liyanarachchi that she had overreacted to Mr. Gotabhaya’s “expressions of concern for her safety,” Presidential Secretariat sources said.

On Tuesday Gothabaya had threatened Ms. Liyanarachchi, saying the paper’s coverage of actions of the Karuna Group had angered the Army-backed paramilitaries. According to the Free Media Movement (FMM), the Defence Secretary had telephoned the editor to say she should not be surprised if the Karuna Group turned its violence against her and if so, she shouldn’t expect government protection.

Sources close to the Daily Mirror said Tuesday that Mr. Gothabaya had been explicit. Speaking in English, the incensed Defence Secretary vowed to Ms. Liyanarachchi: “I’ll exterminate you!” He had also attacked another journalist with the Daily Mirror, Uditha Jayasinha, describing her as “a prostitute whose mother has been sleeping with the Tigers.”

On Wednesday morning President Rajapakse telephoned Ms. Liyanarachchi, saying the incident had been brought his notice by ‘a journalist.’

The President said that Mr. Gothabaya had only wanted to “express his concern for [Ms. Liyanarachchi’ s] safety” after her paper published an article on violence by the Karuna Group and suggested the government was complicit. Ironically, Ms. Liyanarachchi was seen by many as having good links with President Rajapakse’s administration and political camp.

Amid widespread expectation that Mr. Mahinda’s archrival, Ranil Wickremesinghe would win the 2005 President elections, she was the first commentator to emphatically argue the opposite, a media analyst said. And in an interview to the BBC Sinhala service, Laksham Hulugalle, Director General of the Media Centre for National Security (MCNS), said of Ms Liyanarachchi: “we work closely work with her and I’m sure the Defence Secretary would never have said those things.” “He’s not there to threaten journalists but to protect the country from threats,” Mr. Hulugalle said of Mr. Gothabaya.

However the FMM noted that government leaders had criticized Daily Mirror on previous occasions as well over is coverage of the conflict.

“It is an open secret that government leaders and close allies are pressurizing independent media to toe its line on war and peace. We see … a calculated process of coercion by the Government that forces media to abandon its role watch-dog of democracy, and instead adopt the supine role of a lap dog to those in power.”

In the mean time free media movement also had condemned and issued a report. According to FMM

Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary Threatens Editor
The FMM is outraged to receive news that the brother of President Mahinda Rajapaksha and Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa threatened the Editor the Daily Mirror Champika Liyanarachchi, over the telephone on the morning of 17th April 2007.

The Defence Secretary had allegedly expressed his deep displeasure over the conflict coverage by the newspaper. Referring to a front-page news item published the previous day (Armed Karuna faction running its writ in Pottuvil - http://www.dailymir ror.lk/2007/ 04/16/front/ 1.asp), the Defence Secretary had said the story had angered the Karuna faction and furthermore was written against the Government. He had gone on to say that Champika should not be surprised if the Karuna faction turned violent against her. In such an eventuality, he had said that she should not expect any security from the government to protect her. Citing another article by Daily Mirror reporter Uditha Jayasinha (Mutur IDPs: Battling a man-made tsunami in the guise of war, http://www.dailymir ror.lk/2007/ 04/17/feat/ 01.asp), the Defence Secretary had continued his vicious tirade by castigating the reporter and expressing his severe displeasure that the article carried negative remarks on the Sri Lankan
Army by IDPs.

These statements of the Defence Secretary beggar belief. This gross misconduct of a high-placed public official clearly demonstrates the challenges facing free media in Sri Lanka today. The FMM unequivocally deplores the threat made by the Defence Secretary and condemns what is tantamount to violence against the media. We strongly feel this latest assault on free media essentially ridicules this government’s promises to uphold and strengthen media freedom. Given the volatile situation in the country, the FMM also fears that this threat sends a chilling message to the media community at large in Sri Lanka.

The FMM notes that on previous occasions as well, government leaders had criticized Daily Mirror over is coverage of the conflict. It is an open secret that government leaders and close allies are pressurizing independent media to toe its line on war and peace. We see this latest development as a calculated process of coercion by the Government that forces media to abandon its role watch-dog of democracy, and instead adopt the supine role of a lap dog to those in power.

The government can no longer abdicate the responsibility to prevent a further erosion of media freedom in Sri Lanka. Accordingly, the FMM urgently and firmly requests the government to make its position public regarding this incident and also call upon the government to take remedial steps to ensure that loose tongues and wild imaginings of its Ministers and allies are kept in check by educating them on the need to secure and strengthen free media as a vital foundation of democratic governance.

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