04-29-2005, 12:17 AM
Senior Tamil Journalist kidnapped
By: David Sabapathy
Source: TamilCanadian - April 27, 2005
A well-known Sri Lankan Journalist, Mr. Dharmeratnam Sivaram,popularly known as Taraki was kidnapped by unknown assailants from his Colombo residence at 10.30 pm on Thursday, according to informed Media sources. The Police in the Capital also acknowledged that they received a complaint made on this regard as well.
The assailants who arrived in a van forcefully kidnapped him. Mr.Sivaram is a political and defence affairs columnist for the Daily Mirror, the Tamil daily Veerakesari and also a member of the TamilNet's editorial board which report to the world on Tamil Affairs.
On May 3, 2004, a large group of Sri Lanka Police personnel raided a Mr. Sivaram's home in Colombo. That time Mr. Sivaram was away in Batticaloa in connection with the World Press Freedom Day. Scores of special Policemen from the Kohuwela and Mount Lavinia Police stations, in the outer suburbs of Colombo, searched the journalist's house and its premises claiming they were looking for a cache of dangerous weapons hidden there.
"The raid on the Tamil journalist's home is an act of crudeintimidation aimed at stepping up pressure on Mr. Sivaram's family and thereby prevents him from writing critically on sensitive issues affecting the Tamil people. That the Police should have chosen World Press Freedom Day to raid a well known Tamil journalist's home speaks volumes for the state of media freedom in Sri Lanka", Mr. R. Thurairatnam, President of the Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance said in a statement immediately after the raid.
Three months later on July 23, 2004, Sri Lankan Police personnel again raided Mr. Sivaram's home. In a press release, Reporters without Borders (RSF) said, "A dozen [Sri Lanka] police without a warrant searched the Colombo home of Dharmaretnam Sivaram, editor of the news website TamilNet.com for the second time in three months on 23 July." "Reporters Without Borders deplored the post-midnight raid as unjustified and said it was worried about his safety," the release further said.
Mr. Sivaram was with two of his friends, Rajpal Abeynayake of the Sri Lanka Sunday Times and an MP for the eastern district of Batticaloa, Senathirajah Jeyanandamoorthy, when police arrived at the journalist's home for the second raid on July 23, 2004. Despite having parliamentary immunity, Mr.Jeyanandamoorthy, MP, too was searched at that time.
In 2001, Mr.D.Sivaram and Mr.Wijetharan, of 'Thinakathir' editorial were wounded when they were attacked by unidentified men. The journalists were attacked by men armed with clubs who had arrived in a van to the Thinakathir office, an independent Tamil daily published in Batticaloa. Persons connected with the security forces were blamed on that attack.
The Reporters Sans Frontiers, the French media watchdog, and many other international media organization continually expressed their fear that working conditions for Tamil journalists remain very dangerous in Sri Lanka
By: David Sabapathy
Source: TamilCanadian - April 27, 2005
A well-known Sri Lankan Journalist, Mr. Dharmeratnam Sivaram,popularly known as Taraki was kidnapped by unknown assailants from his Colombo residence at 10.30 pm on Thursday, according to informed Media sources. The Police in the Capital also acknowledged that they received a complaint made on this regard as well.
The assailants who arrived in a van forcefully kidnapped him. Mr.Sivaram is a political and defence affairs columnist for the Daily Mirror, the Tamil daily Veerakesari and also a member of the TamilNet's editorial board which report to the world on Tamil Affairs.
On May 3, 2004, a large group of Sri Lanka Police personnel raided a Mr. Sivaram's home in Colombo. That time Mr. Sivaram was away in Batticaloa in connection with the World Press Freedom Day. Scores of special Policemen from the Kohuwela and Mount Lavinia Police stations, in the outer suburbs of Colombo, searched the journalist's house and its premises claiming they were looking for a cache of dangerous weapons hidden there.
"The raid on the Tamil journalist's home is an act of crudeintimidation aimed at stepping up pressure on Mr. Sivaram's family and thereby prevents him from writing critically on sensitive issues affecting the Tamil people. That the Police should have chosen World Press Freedom Day to raid a well known Tamil journalist's home speaks volumes for the state of media freedom in Sri Lanka", Mr. R. Thurairatnam, President of the Sri Lanka Tamil Media Alliance said in a statement immediately after the raid.
Three months later on July 23, 2004, Sri Lankan Police personnel again raided Mr. Sivaram's home. In a press release, Reporters without Borders (RSF) said, "A dozen [Sri Lanka] police without a warrant searched the Colombo home of Dharmaretnam Sivaram, editor of the news website TamilNet.com for the second time in three months on 23 July." "Reporters Without Borders deplored the post-midnight raid as unjustified and said it was worried about his safety," the release further said.
Mr. Sivaram was with two of his friends, Rajpal Abeynayake of the Sri Lanka Sunday Times and an MP for the eastern district of Batticaloa, Senathirajah Jeyanandamoorthy, when police arrived at the journalist's home for the second raid on July 23, 2004. Despite having parliamentary immunity, Mr.Jeyanandamoorthy, MP, too was searched at that time.
In 2001, Mr.D.Sivaram and Mr.Wijetharan, of 'Thinakathir' editorial were wounded when they were attacked by unidentified men. The journalists were attacked by men armed with clubs who had arrived in a van to the Thinakathir office, an independent Tamil daily published in Batticaloa. Persons connected with the security forces were blamed on that attack.
The Reporters Sans Frontiers, the French media watchdog, and many other international media organization continually expressed their fear that working conditions for Tamil journalists remain very dangerous in Sri Lanka
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