Jaffna journalist N. Parameswaran threatened by ruling party supporters.

Media Release

The five media organization collective condemns the illegal arrest of senior Jaffna Journalist N. Parameswaran and threats directed against him by supporters of the ruling coalition.  This unlawful act is a clear violation of peoples’ right to information and the journalists’ right to gather information. Journalist Parameswaran was arrested in Jaffna  on Saturday, 27 February 2010 by a group of supporters of the Sri Lanka Peoples’ Party (SLPP), one of the constituent  parties of the ruling coalition. This blatant act of thugary in time of an election when peoples’ right to information acquires a paramount importance challenges democratic processes.

Journalist N. Parameswaran is the Jaffna correspondent of The Daily Mirror and Lankadeepa published in Colombo and BBC Tamil service broadcast from London. Mr. Parameswaran was gathering information in front of the SLPP office where Vanni IDPs had gathered in long queues. Mr. Parameswaran told the five media organization collective that he was arrested and threatened because he exposed the fraud of by the SLPP who made IDPs fill in membership forms of Sri Lanka Freedom Party, the leading party of the ruling coalition, with the pretext to provide welfare support to the registered IDPs. While he was talking to the IDPs, Mr. Parameswran was arrested by civil supporters of SLPP and produced before the SLFP organizer in Jaffna, Thilakumara Udugama. His camera and mobile phone were taken by force and he was video taped inside the party office while he was threatened.

He was released after half an hour, when a senior police officer refused to arrest him as demanded by SLFP organizer Thilakumara Udugama. His camera and  mobile phone was returned later. Mr. Parameswaran told the five media collective that he lodged a complaint at the Jaffna police station on the same day.

It is ironical that before the President’s request to the police to inform him immediately if a journalist is arrested is forgotten by the people, his political supporters in Jaffna have taken the law unto themselves in arresting journalist N. Parameswaran.  We demand that an immediate inquiry is held on this violent act carried out by political supporters and that the culprits are taken to the book.  Furthermore, we request that all journalists working in Jaffna, including Mr. Parameswaran, are assured of a situation free of intimidation and threats so that they can perform their duty to the people during the upcoming general election.