FORMER AG 'MISLED UN' SAYS FMM

The FMM said that it was “extremely concerned” why the government did not disclose that information to the police, courts or to the human rights commission.

A local media watchdog had allegedly accused the government of misleading the United Nations over the plight of missing and tortured media personnel.

The Free Media Movement (FMM) says the former attorney general (AG) Mohan Peiris, who represented Sri Lanka, “deliberately misled” the UN Committee against Torture (CAT). It recalled that Mr. Peiris, responding to a question by one of the UN delegates about the political columnist cum cartoonist Prageeth Ekneligoda, who had been missing since January 2009, Mr Peiris had suggested that the journalist had sought asylum abroad.

"Our current information is that Mr. Ekneligoda has taken refuge in a foreign country," Mohan Peiris had replied. “I am not saying this ‘tongue in cheek’. It is something that we are reasonably certain of. This is information that we have got through the media circles which is being played out for various reasons. I shouldn't say more because the matter is still being investigated,” he added.

Addressing the media days after the statement was made, the missing journalist’s wife, Sandya, challenged to the government to disclose Prageeth’s whereabouts if the government is certain about him seeking asylum in another country.


The FMM said that it was “extremely concerned” why the government did not disclose that information to the police, courts or to the human rights commission. "The government has also not revealed any of this in Parliament where questions have been raised about Ekneligoda’s disappearance," says the FMM.

The written statement submitted to the CAT by the government also states that the investigation on the serious assault on media union leader Poddala Jayantha was dropped based on Mr Jayantha’s statement. "Mr Jayantha had denied that he ever made a statement requesting investigations to be stopped and demands that investigations should continue,” the FMM statement issued by its Convener, Sunil Jayasekara said. Requesting the UN to raise concerns over the “misrepresentations” in its concluding observations, the watchdog further questions another “misleading statement” regarding the release of senior Tamil journalist JS Tissainayagam.

“The government has claimed that Mr Tissainayagam, who was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment under anti-terror laws, has admitted remorse for actions to receive a presidential pardon. The journalist concerned had denied ever having expressed regret as the government claims”, it said. The FMM added that it is concerned that the “tone of the government response indicates that torture was acceptable,” if somebody had admitted his guilt.

Mohan Peiris's move to withdraw murder and rape charges filed in high court against ruling party politicians Chandana Kathriaarachchi and Duminda Silva in his capacity as the AG was criticized by the then Chief Justice Asoka de Silva. Writing in the Sunday Times, senior counsel Kishali Pinto Jayawardene, however, criticized the CJ for not taking action against the former AG'S move.