Video: Yes, he is there: Arundika
Thursday, 13 June 2013
UPFA MP Arundika Fernando said yesterday that the French Embassy should conduct a full inquiry and provide any information available on missing journalist Prageeth Eknaligoda to the Sri Lankan authorities.Video
Fernando said that the disappearance of Eknaligoda would be detrimental to the future of the country if it was not properly investigated as the government had already come under fire for the disappearance of journalists, including Eknaligoda before international human rights tribunals.“When I found out about Eknaligoda I informed the relevant authorities and an investigation was likely to have been conducted at the time. I stayed quiet about it. But there have been continuous allegations against the government and when the UNP charged that the government was responsible for suppressing, assaulting and killing journalists, I decided that I should speak up,” Fernando said.
He alleged that he met Eknaligoda during a visit to France in December 2011 in a house shared by about ten Sri Lankans including journalist Manjula Wediwardena who introduced Eknaligoda to him.
“I recall that he was short, bald and elderly-looking. Manjula introduced him to me at the time, but now he denies it. I believe he is afraid and feels that there might be a threat to his life and the others who are also secretly residing abroad like Eknaligoda,” he said.
He said that several journalists like Eknaligoda had sought refuge abroad with the support of international agencies and diplomatic missions and could not be returned home. However, the people need to be informed about the truth, he said. (Olindi Jayasundara)
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Wed, Jun 12, 2013, 08:32 pm SL Time, ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
June 12, Colombo: Faizer Mustapha, the Deputy Minister of Investment Promotion in the Sri Lankan government says that it is dangerous to hold election to the Northern Provincial Council with land and police powers since the major Tamil party, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) still harbors a separatist line.The Deputy Minister joined by Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) Batticaloa organizer, Arun Thambimuttu told the media that the provinces did not need land and police powers.
Mustapha and Thambimuttu said the provincial council system was a white elephant and land and police powers allocated to the provinces under the 13th Amendment should be repealed before the Northern Provincial Council (NPC) election.
According to Mustapha, if police powers were granted to the provincial councils it would interfere with the independence of the police.
