| TNA to submit report to UNHRC |
By Our Political Correspondent-2013-02-10
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) will submit a report at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) sessions in March and request an international probe into the disappearances and civilian deaths occurred during the final stage of the war, TNA parliamentarian Suresh Premachandran said. The Jaffa District parliamentarian said the report will focus on the disappearances, the issues faced by the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and their resettlement.
He said the report released by the army on the war has ruled out disappearances, in total contrast to the finding of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC).
There would not be reconciliation until the truth is out, he warned.
A US-sponsored resolution on Sri Lanka is also expected to be presented at the upcoming sessions.
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- US investors hold massive stake in stock and bond market; catastrophe if they pull out�
- Govt. media spokespersons lack common approach; faux pas over Afghanistan story
- UNHRC sessions to focus on Lanka; strong resolutions and other measures likely
By Our Political Editor-Sunday, February 10, 2013
Media should know basics to use more than one source for a story. Big problem in Sri Lankan media.
That gratuitous advice in the form of a tweet came from the Director (International Media) of the Sri Lanka President’s office.
That gratuitous advice in the form of a tweet came from the Director (International Media) of the Sri Lanka President’s office.
Security was tight when President Mahinda Rajapaksa visited Buddha Gaya on Friday. Pic by Sudath Silva
There is little doubt about the wisdom of what she says. Those elements of journalism are taught to those who aspire to be hard-nosed newspersons. However, is that a big problem for the Sri Lankan media? Hardly any editor of the national media would agree there is indeed one, or that the media does not know their basics. Of course, there are the occasional misquotes or wrong stories that generate a denial. They are accommodated with corrections if the media is wrong or with strong assertions when the media is right. That is standard practice not only in Sri Lanka but the world over.
However, here is an instance where none other than the Director (International Media) of the President, has not followed the basic journalistic tenet of checking her own facts before saying what she said. That too, on her official twitter account. The cause for that public admonition was a news story that appeared in the official government website news.lk. The story was picked up in Colombo by SMS news alert operators and the international media. The following account in Agence France Presse (AFP) moved across the globe gives one an idea:
COLOMBO, Feb 5, 2013 (AFP) – Sri Lanka said Tuesday it had rejected a US request to send troops to Afghanistan but retracted the claim within hours, triggering angry responses on social media about the government’s credibility.
“President Mahinda Rajapakse has rejected a call by US to send Lankan troops to Afghanistan,” the government’s information department said in an SMS news alert which was immediately rebroadcast by almost all local media outlets.US diplomats in Colombo appeared puzzled over the Sri Lankan government claim and privately said that there was no pending request.
“President Mahinda Rajapakse has rejected a call by US to send Lankan troops to Afghanistan,” the government’s information department said in an SMS news alert which was immediately rebroadcast by almost all local media outlets.US diplomats in Colombo appeared puzzled over the Sri Lankan government claim and privately said that there was no pending request.
A couple of hours later, presidential spokesman Mohan Samaranayake officially trashed the government’s own claim.”President Rajapakse has neither received nor rejected any requests by the US for Lankan troops to be sent to Afghanistan,” he said in a brief one-paragraph statement.
President Rajapakse’s own twitter account @PresRajapaksa admonished journalists to “double check facts w/multiple sources” before publishing and this drew sharp responses from Sri Lankan reporters.
“Are u saying we can’t even ‘TRUST’ what the Govt. Info is saying through its SMS service. Who can we trust?,” tweeted Gandhya Senanayake.
