Sri Lanka government in need of some kind of tension to maintain draconian laws

(March 03, Colombo - Lanka Polity)  Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa has reconvened the parliament. Last month he dissolved the parliament and called for elections. The general election is scheduled to be held on April 08.

The President has used his executive powers to extend the state of emergency for a period of one month subjected to the approval of the parliament within 10 days. The aim of reconvening the parliament is approving the extension of emergency.

Sri Lanka is under state of emergency since decades due to the war with the Tamil Tiger rebels. The emergency regulations provide sweeping authorities to police and security forces to interfere in the rights of the citizens.

The government has decided to maintain the emergency regulations further covering to the argument that the Tamil Tiger rebels that were defeated militarily last year might attempt a comeback if the security grip was loosened.

The Prime Minister Rathnasiri Wickramanayaka recently said that several suicide cadres of the Tamil Tiger organization are in Colombo. Police arrested a Tiger financial affairs activist this week.

Peace that prevails after May 18, the day the Tamil Tiger leader Velupillai Prabakaran was killed, seems uncomfortable to the government. The government needs some kind of tension to rationalize the maintaining of draconian laws such as emergency regulations and Prevention of Terrorism Act.

Government needs these draconian laws to suppress unrest. Thousands of Tamil youth are still in custody without urgent legal action thanks to these laws.

Sri Lankan journalists rally to protest Press Council and to get Tissainayagam released

(September 27, Colombo - Lanka Polity) Several leading media organizations of Sri Lanka call for all citizens who value freedom in all its forms to staunchly oppose the reactivation of the draconian Press Council and to agitate for the release of our colleague J.S. Tissainayagam who was branded a terrorist and sentenced for 20 years under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA).
 

"We can achieve these objectives only through a show of commitment and solidarity. Hence, a large gathering of journalists, civil society activists, political parties, artistes, religious leaders and civic minded citizens who wish to fight for a just and free society will come together on September 29 at the Jayewardene Center, Dharmapala Mawatha, Colombo 07 (opposite Vihara Maha Devi Park) at 4 pm. 

"We intend initiating a people’s petition against the reactivation of the Press Council and invite you in your capacity as a socially conscious citizen who wishes to safeguard democracy in our motherland to join hands with those likeminded others at this event," says the media organizations in a statement. 

 The organizations that convene this meeting are:

The Editor’s Guild of   Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association
Federation of Media Employee's Trade Union
Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum
Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance
Free Media Movement
National Forum of Journalists