Sri Lanka: Media activist seeks international probe

BBC Sinhala
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A journalist union leader who was abducted and tortured by yet unidentified group says he will seek international justice as authorities in Sri Lanka have failed to bring the culprits to books.

Poddala Jayantha was one of the remaining journalist leaders in Sri Lanka when he was abducted, beaten and alter thrown away from a vehicle on 01 June 2009.

The former President of the Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association (SLWJA), Mr. Jayantha has since left the country on security grounds.

Police have recently informed the court that the investigation is no longer active as no suspects have been found.

Rule of law

"I don't believe the police are incapable of finding the suspects," he told BBC Sandeshaya while in exile.

He said the police in Sri Lanka have been very efficient when it comes to finding suspects who attacked or harmed powerful people in the society.

"Is it I myself who has to find evidence and produce before courts?" Mr. Poddala asked.

The Hong Kong based Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) says that abduction happened "in a systematic manner that prevails in many cases of abductions with white vans."

"Supremacy of the law remains the fundamental basis for any democracy. The rule of law is the governing principle in a democracy." The AHRC said in a statement.

© BBC Sinhala