Friday, October 5, 2012

Case dismissed: death threats not persecution

Death threats … Frederica Jansz whose application to resettle in Australia has been turned down. Photo: Abeetha Sandesh Pathirana

A Sri Lankan newspaper editor - threatened by a senior government official and brother to the President that she would be killed - has had an asylum claim to resettle in Australia rejected.

Frederica Jansz was last month sacked as editor of The Sunday Leader by the newspaper's new owner, whom she described as an ally of the Sri Lankan President, Mahinda Rajapaksa, allegedly because she refused to stop publishing articles critical of the Sri Lankan government, and, in particular, the President.

In July, the Defence Secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa - the President's younger brother - threatened Ms Jansz during an phone interview that she might be harmed for her criticism of the government. The interview, on speaker phone, was heard by several people.

''Ninety per cent of the people in this country hate you,'' Mr Rajapaksa said. ''They hate you. You come for a function where I am and I will tell people this is the editor of the Sunday Leader and 90 per cent there will show that they hate you. You pig that eats shit … people will kill you. People hate you. They will kill you.''