Two years have rolled by since the murder of Lankan reputed journalist ‘Taraki’. In the field of journalism, he has left a vacuum that is hard to fill. He was one who loved Tamil nationalism and the Tamil people.

Although there have been agitations in Sri Lanka and abroad condemning his brutal murder and demanding that the killing be thoroughly investigated and the culprits be brought to book, no progress has been made so far.

As ‘Taraki’ was dedicated to journalism and had been a lover of journalism, we are duty bound to express our salutations on this day of his remembrance.

The journalists, who took a vow at his funeral to carry on the services he rendered to the Tamil people, must serve the cause he died for. Meanwhile, the government must ensure the safety and the security of the media people.

While we recall the memory of Sivaram and his mission, we salute other media men who sacrificed their lives n the service of the people and in the performance of their duties as a journalist. Here, we mention them below in an appropriate spirit.

Mylvaganam Nirmalarajan was killed in Jaffna on October 19, 2000.

Iyathurai Nadesan was killed in Batticaloa, on May 31, 2004.

Nadaraja was murdered in Colombo on November 2, 1999.

Subramanium Suhirthan was killed in Trincomalee on January 24, 2006.

Sinnathamby Siva Maharasa was shot dead in Jaffna on August 21, 2006.

Relanki Selvarasa and her husband were murdered in Colombo on August 12, 2005.

Lakmal Sampath was murdered in Colombo on July 21, 2006.

Two media employees were killed inside the Uthayan office in Jaffna on may 2, 2006.

Richard de Soyza was killed Colombo on February 18, 1990.

K.S.Rajah was shot dead at the Galle faceGreen.

The mystery that surrounds their murders too have not come to light. The families of these deceased journalists must be paid compensation.

The media men cannot afford to lose their colleagues in this manner any more. We stress that media freedom must be ensured to ensure democracy.

An English translation of the Editorial in Virakesari, a Tamil daily based in Colombo

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed