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16th death anniversary of Lasantha Wickamatunga

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Lasantha Wickamatunga, the founding editor of ‘The Sunday Leader’ newspaper was remembered in Colombo and in the eastern province on the 16th anniversary of his daylight killing.

Tamil journalists and several politicians offered flowers and lights to a photograph of Wickramatunga at a memorial built near Gandhi Park in Batticaloa on 08 January.

Gathering under the media unions in the province, they also staged a protest to seek justice for all slain journalists.

The month has been dubbed ‘black January’ since it has witnessed the highest number of journalist killings in the country.

Batticaloa media club’s Valasingham Krishnakumar, who led the remembrance, charged journalists are denied their freedom even under the present NPP regime.

Just last week, journalists came under attack in Ampara and Kilinochchi for revealing the truth, said Krishnakumar.

He demanded justice for all victimized journalists in the north and the south, including those who had to flee the country for their lives.

Successive rulers repress journalists more and more, instead of giving them justice, he said.

44 victims within six years

Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka (JDS) has documented 44 journalists who were either killed, abducted, attacked or harassed between 2004-2010.

A vast majority of them are from the north.

At Borella cemetery, where Lasantha Wickramatunga is buried, media professionals, politicians and human rights activists held a remembrance.

Among them was Sandya Ekneligoda, the wife of missing journalist Prageeth Ekneligoda, who expressed hope the JVP-led NPP rule would ensure justice for Wickramatunga within this year.

(The Leader)

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