A coalition of over 140 activists and rights groups has condemned ongoing harassment, surveillance, and intimidation targeting Tamil photojournalist Kumanan Kanapathipillai from Mullaitivu.
The collective said that the sustained abuse is part of a troubling pattern by local authorities, raising concerns about press freedom and human rights in Sri Lanka.
Kumanan has been classified as a “journalist-at-risk” by several international human rights organisations due to years of threats and attacks.
In 2020, Kumanan and another journalist were assaulted while covering illegal tree smuggling. More recently, in 2024, the Counter-Terrorism Investigation Division (CTID) interrogated Kumanan’s parents and associates.
The harassment escalated sharply on 17 August, when Kumanan was interrogated for seven hours by the CTID, which accused him of conducting photojournalism as an act “against the government” and labelled it a “terrorist” activity.
During the United Nations Committee on Enforced Disappearances’ review of Sri Lanka in Geneva on 26 September, a government representative justified these actions by alleging Kumanan’s involvement in financial crimes and terrorism.
The activist statement criticised the government for failing to hold security agencies accountable and warned that such actions erode trust, particularly among the Tamil community.
“Kumanan’s treatment signals to the public that state structures continue to repudiate ‘system change’,” it said, highlighting that these tactics undermine the credibility of the government.
The groups called on the Sri Lankan government to immediately end all surveillance and harassment, stop using legal frameworks to brand journalists as terrorists, uphold constitutional rights, and halt misinformation campaigns targeting media workers.
They also urged the international community to pressure Sri Lanka to respect press freedom and improve the human rights situation in the country’s north-east, focusing on the protection of Tamil journalists and activists.
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