ATTEMPT to SUPPRESSING MEDIA
On 28th July, police arrested Tharindu Uduwaragedara, Sri Lankan journalist who was attending to the purpose of reporting the Trade Union protest in Borella, Colombo. Uduwuwaragedara,forcibly dragged out of a three- wheeler, grabbed by his hair and roughly manhandled by a group of Police officers, while he was leaving the protest and forced him into a police vehicle while he repeatedly identified himself as a journalist. Two officers beat Uduwaragedara while en route to the Borella Police Station, where he detained without charge or access to medical treatment for a head injury.
The whole incident was vividly and widely circulated in the country. The nature of the Police behaviour in Sri Lanka found itself vividly expressed by the available photos and videos. The arrest itself and the manner in which it was done and the manner in which the Police behaved will remain a spectacle for anyone who has any doubts about the utter degeneration to which the Police has been exposed to and the kind of behaviour that people throughout the country are experiencing at the hands of a law enforcement agency which has gone out of control and shamelessly behaves against the law.
Police used water cannons and tear gas to disperse the protest, where demonstrators had gathered to oppose the slashing of pension funds a severe economic crisis.
Samagi Jana Bslawegaya (SJB) Deputy General Secretary Mujibur Rahman accused the Government of suppressing the media following the arrest of a journalist at protest held in Colombo.
Rahman called the arrest “inhumane” and said it was a forewarning of the Government’s attempts to suppress and silence journalists and media in the county.
Rahman condemned. “The fundamental rights of the people, including the right to dissent and freedom of expression, are currently facing serious threats as the Government takes measures to forcefully suppress them. A clear example of this was witnessed during the arrest of Uduwaragedara,” he said. The SJB General Secretary called on all parties in the opposition both inside and outside parliament to come together to voice their dissent against the anti- democratic actions of the Government. “ It is time we commence a struggle against this anti-democratic Government that seeks to suppress the media and the freedom of expression,” he noted. Rahman also claimed Uduwaragedara was targeted by the police and hunted down.
“Many journalists have now become targets of the Government,” he alleged.
