Sunday Leader Editor Shot
Lasantha Wickramatunga is in critical condition now. As he was driving to work, two gunmen came and shot him in the head. What is happening to us? When I’m driving to work I see cops every 20 meters. Sometimes I don’t really feel like they’re there to protect me. I mean, the people that the government wants silenced end up silenced and the killers get away. I don’t know what’s worse, that the Rajapakses are doing this or that things are just completely out of control. Because it’s terrorism. It provokes terror in the media, and the people, and the result is that these people are silenced. Innocent men are shot in the head on the way to work for what they write. TV stations are burnt and grenaded for what they air. And average Sri Lankans live in fear, for what they believe. And the end result is ignorance and war. Not to depress, but bit of a charter scene.
Gotabaya recently sued the Leader for defamation. He’s released memos saying that the media should not report about the war at all, and the brothers have deemed any writing that doesn’t support their war unpatriotic and even treasonous. And the coterie of power has said that they can’t be accountable for what ‘people that love us’ do. He is, at the least, not shedding tears. The Rajapakse’s also keep Mervyn Silva in the fold. Most of the people who thrashed him at Rupavahini ended up stabbed in the bus. He lost a court case to Sirasa on some minor change, but then the entire control room was burnt down. It’s hard to see who’s done these things (partly because it’s foxes investigating the henhouse). It’s not hard to see who benefits.
Of course, what we lose is basic law and order in Sri Lanka. Which is, you know, important for a place you’d want to raise your kids in. As the latest Sunday Leader editorial says:
Who then survives to provide the public with a contrarian view? Much of the media has been bought, or cajoled and bullied into silence. Dozens of journalists are dead and others have been incarcerated without trial for months. The electronic media operate under the continuing threat of having their licenses revoked unless they toe the government’s line. After all, it has happened that they have been summarily shut down. New licenses, in turn, are issued only to that section of the business community subscribing to the government’s communal thinking
However, just as an asteroid killed the dinosaurs so that mammals might flourish, perhaps new media can slowly start to carry some of the weight that needs to be carried. I mean, what else do we have. In addition to being a globally tenuous business model, the government licensing antagonism and outright threat of death and arson makes traditional media extra difficult.
I don’t think they can bury the truth for ever, but I do wonder about the limits when they’re simply shooting editors in the street. One wonders what the rest of the week will hold.
and he’s dead. I’m so sorry for his family, and staff, and friends. And Sri Lanka. And me
O crap. Shouldn’t have blogged inauspiciously :(
Sadly I always felt that basic law and order was a commodity in Sri Lanka. 1983, bully politics at school, and the JVP days at the end of the 80s all drove home that point. It all boils down to who is protecting you and what favours you need to pull to maintain that protection. Seems like the mask is coming off this country’s feudal face (if it was ever on in the first place).
Sad thing is there are people who see the attack on Sirasa and Lasantha as a good thing and a warning to the others. They criticize Sirasa for being biased while ignoring the bias of the government channels. After the last two attacks I don’t thing we will be getting any news criticizing the GOSL for a while.
As for the new media carrying the weight, it seems pretty clear that we’re either preaching to the choir, or just antagonizing the bigots (which is kinda fun). I have my doubts about if we are actually informing people, and even less, that we are changing their views (I don’t know any reformed bigots–do you?). And let’s face it, the masses don’t read us…because the masses CAN’T read us–they can’t afford the computer and internet. In any case, I don’t think the masses really depend on the media for information; it’s more about checking on their team–is the news bad or good for the party they support. The real source of information on the street is the rumour–did you hear that Sirasa bombed themselves? Or Lasantha blackmailed people with the information he got–he was a menace to society, good thing they killed him. The JVP used to have a good system in the 80′s–they’d just throw leaflets out the window of a vehicle, and that tidbit of info in the leaflet sparks off a new rumour. It worked pretty well.
Yeah, I don’t know why I even bring it up. Just trying to find something hopeful out of this situation.
I don’t think the wholesale collapse of the mainstream media is good for anyone.
Lasantha’s editorial last Sunday:
http://www.thesundayleader.lk/20090104/editorial-.htm
Lasantha seems to be getting more sympathy than Sirasa (from my spot poll of various flag-waving blog comments)–let’s hope that amounts to something. His death should not be forgotten, and the culprits must be punished. Somehow, in spite of how dangerous SL is for journalists, I always thought Lasantha could not or would not be touched–I dunno, like he was Clark Kent or something. I remember how he used to criticize CBK (including her educational qualifications), and she used to refer to him in the basest, most demeaning terms, but the minute she got dumped from power her first interview was with Lasantha. So I assumed every politician knew they would need him someday when they were on the other side of the tracks. This is what scares me. I think these guys are pretty confident they’ll never be on the other side of the tracks.
And who’s going to give us something real to read on Sundays? Every other paper out there is just ass-kissing fluff these days. Gonna miss Lasantha. These guys just shot the only light bulb that shone bright in the darkness that is our media. Gonna miss him. I feel like I should do something…what?
Yes, I too thought he was too high profile to be killed — sorta like Morgan Tsvangirai in Zimbabwe — they could beat him up or attack his house, but not kill him. Guess we were wrong. Another reason I thought he’d be safe was because the Sunday Leader wasn’t having as much impact as it did a few years ago. All the scoops on corruption were just confirming that the government was corrupt and nothing could be done about it.
I think Sirasa gets less sympathy due to the fact that it’s seen as part of a big corporation with vested and questionable interests, coupled with rather spotty journalism. But Lasantha was admired for being brave and a rebel, an individualist.
sadness and shock…. what more can we say?
One week and everyone forgets it.
I believe that people who killed Lasantha & attacked Sirasa are in a position to have a good night sleep.
I don’t have much reasons to love this country now.
what ever his personal views maybe… no man deserves to be killed like an animal… on the road… in that aspect i want express my regrets… good man lost… who could have made a difference… what ever he said whether right or wrong… lasantha stood by his word… i salute him for that…
Dear Friends,
Lasantha died fighting for your right to know.
The time has come to let the Government know that ENOUGH is ENOUGH!
Will you stand up and be counted or will you sit and wait till the wolves come for you?
Don’t just argue online. Come together tomorrow (9th) at noon in front of Lake House. Let us show this Government that the people are serious about democracy.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.
At the risk of sounding negative, this is another round of the same old same old. Can’t recall when placard waving and shouting ever changed anything in this country. Other than created another traffic jam in an already congested part of town.
Spare a thought for the uncooled people who will be trapped inside hot sweaty buses for even longer as a result.
Average minded Sri Lankans would get into conclusions once they catch something. Listen to, see or read something. But we all know most of the things that we know we have gathered from what is telecast in the media. And they give us what they want us to hear. We all know that. But this is not something that we can change. It is off our hands.
Anyways, i think there are more things that we should think about, in incidents like these. These can be done by GOSL or by someone else that want to frame the GOSL. We know both these parties are both black & white. So, I think before we conclude we must dig some more. Else just ideas would be fine without conclusions. :-)
Firstly I would like to eat humble pie and apologise to everyone in the kottu blogsphere for my recent and not too recent cavalier attitude and blind support for the current SLGov and the war.
I have seen reality and maybe Lasantha’s murder convinced me completely to the reality of the situation.
We all know that this current SLGov are confidently fighting the war as the Americans are backing us heavily. Lets hope that with Bush’s departure and Obama’s entry into world affairs from the 20th of Jan we will see a policy change in how America looks at the rest of the world.
In our case, Sri Lanka.
I now pray that we won’t be the next Zimbabwe or Kenya. Or are we already worse than them?
And again my heartfelt apologies. I mean it.
WTF? Did someone actually change their mind? I don’t, what?
Well…that’s one at least. It’s a start.
I feel….having a close family member being very much involved in the army’s efforts (negative or positive as you may see it), that his and many other sri lankan’s efforts are in vain when the gov blatently surpresses media freedom. I don’t even belive half the things they report. But then, that’s just me and a handful, unfortunately. How come the masses are so easy to hoodwink?
We must have the most number of unresolved assassinations in the world. We just blame whoever we think needs to be blamed and then all is forgotten and no one is ever brought to justice or held accountable. Lasantha’s case will go down the same route as an unresolved mystery as the previous ones like Raviraj (TNA MP), Joseph Pararajasingham (TNA MP), Maheswaran (UNP MP). As usual govt will condemn the attack and promise a full probe out of which nothing comes out.