Questions on Govt. sincerity regarding media freedom

THE 17th anniversary of the assassination of The Sunday Leader Editor-in-Chief Lasantha Wickrematunge was marked with a service at his graveside on Thursday.

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Family, friends, former colleagues, and others gathered at the Borella General Cemetery to mark the anniversary.

Wickrematunge was assassinated on 8 January 2009 and the hunt for his killers remains elusive despite promises made by different political parties to punish those involved. Wickrematunge, who was an outspoken critic of the Mahinda Rajapaksa administration, was killed during the period and successive Governments have used the killing to score points during election campaigns but have not followed through on their promises.

First, it was the Yahapalanaya Government, and now, the ruling National People’s Power (NPP) too is going the same way. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who promised justice for the Wickrematunge family, has since gone silent. In fact, instead of upholding the promises to protect media freedom, the Government is slowly tightening its grip on the media and attempting to silence its critics.