Discrimination over the investigation of murdered Tamil Journalists: accuses Wigneswaran

Northern Provincial Council Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran has accused that there exists discrimination over the investigation into the killings of Tamil Journalists in Sri Lanka since 2000.

Wigneswaran made this allegation during his meeting with Minister in Charge of Media Affairs Gayantha Karunatilleke, this evening in Jaffna.  The  Media Minister  is currently on a 3-day visit to North.

“Lasantha’s matter plus Eknaligoda’s matters were opened for investigation but not any of the Tamil speaking journalists killed like Nimalarajan, I.Nadesan, Sugirtharajan  and Sivaram whose alleged killers are still within the Island. 35 such murders still remain unopened” Wigneswaran said.

Here is Wigneswaran’s full speech during the meeting:

Circumstances have conspired to delay our meeting each other. Last evening I cut short a meeting and came here and waited from 5.30 pm to 6.30 pm. Due to another meeting at 7 pm I had to leave even though we had made all arrangements to receive you.

This morning at 9 am I was told there would be a ten minutes’ delay. I did wait till 10.55 am and left for another meeting at 10 am. Normally I keep to time. I heard you had come as soon as I left. Even if I stayed back I would have delayed the other Meeting organizers.

Hope you understood my predicament.

Lest there be any obstacles to our meeting at 6 .30 pm today let me flag a few matters which I had been wanting to share with you.

Mr.Bharathy Rajanayagam, Secretary, Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance brought to my notice that since year 2000 nearly 40 journalists and media employees have been murdered or have disappeared. Of them only four are Sinhalese and the rest Tamil speaking. Lasantha’s matter plus Eknaligoda’s matters were opened for investigation but not any of the Tamil speaking journalists killed like Nimalarajan, I.Nadesan, Sugirtharajan  and Sivaram whose alleged killers are still within the Island. 35 such murders still remain unopened. Uthayan employees were brutally killed. Their office badly damaged. But no investigations have been set up. No compensation for their families have been paid.

Another matter that needs to be brought to your notice is the lack of coordination between Sinhala and Tamil news presentation. They are at variance. This may be due to lack of understanding or a deliberate attempt to present a distorted news item. This needs to be looked into.

Finally I like to point out that in South Africa the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was set up after a political settlement had been reached. Here we are talking about a reconciliation without settling the matter in issue which is a political settlement. Unless a political settlement is arrived at no amount of cosmetic undertakings like joint meetings with journalists etc is going to work. Still the Central Government thinks of us as those to be dominated and rather than as equal partners. A political settlement will lay down the parameters of our relationship correctly.

Let me nevertheless thank you for taking steps to bring the journalists from North and South together. But the outcome would not be as bright as you expect it to be due to the delay in political settlement.