Colombo (AsiaNews) – The government of Sri Lanka is using the anti-terrorism law to silence critical voices in the press, said the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ). The charge follows the arrest of a media executive who has been in prison without charge since 26 February. Dushantha Basnayake, 40, is a director of Standard Newspapers, a private firm which publishes the Sinhalese language weekly Mawbima. He is the second person affiliated to the publication to be detained under the new law.
Witnesses said men from the anti-terrorism division interrogated Basnayake for four hours in his office before taking him to prison. The IFJ said Mawbima is known for its critical stand towards the government and has already refused to bow to pressure and intimidation to review its editorial policy. A reporter of Mawbima, Tamil journalist Munusamy Parameshawary, 23 years, has been detained without charge since last November.
In a press statement issued yesterday, the president of the IFJ, Christopher Warren, expressed concern that the anti-terrorism law is being used by the authorities in Sri Lanka to “oppress the press and suffocate independent voices”. The fear is that “Basnayake’s arrest will emulate Parameshawary’s who tomorrow will have spent 100 days in detention although no formal charges have been made against her.” Warren continued: “These cases send a strong massage to the international community that the Sri Lankan authorities are abusing the anti-terror laws in an attempt to quash criticism.”
The IFJ is an organization that gathered more than 500,000 journalists from over 115 countries around the world.