"If Prageeth is not missing, government should prove it" - SLWJA

A number of Sri Lankan web newspapers are blocked by Sri Lanka authorities in the run up to the presidential polls, a press freedom watchdog claims.

Lankaenews, Lankanewsweb, Infolanka and Sri Lanka Guardian websites were blocked in Sri Lanka hours before the results of the presidential elections announced, Paris based Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said in a statement.

Condemning the "imposition of additional restrictions" on online freedom of expression, the watchdog said such censorship reflects the government's "readiness to resort to manipulation."

"The free flow of news and information during an election offers one of the few guarantees against massive fraud. We urge the government to restore access to these sites as the electoral commission has requested," RSF said in a statement.

The Lankaenews has lodged a complaint with the elections commissioner against the government's blocking of the website.

The Commissioner has referred the complaint to Sri Lanka Telecom, the Internet Service Provider (ISP). Secretary to the President, Lalith Weerathunga, is the chairman of the SLT.

Meanwhile, the press freedom watchdog has raised concern over the political columnist and cartoonist for Lankaenews, Prageeth Eknaligoda, who went missing last Sunday.

'Same old game'

Mr. Eknaligoda has been campaigning for the candidacy of the main opposition candidate Gen Sarath Fonseka.

"Eknaligoda had just written a long piece comparing the two leading presidential candidates and expressing a preference for the opposition candidate," said the RSF.

The Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association (SLWJA) accused the authorities of not taking steps to find the whereabouts of the missing journalist.

Its General Secretary, Lasantha Ruhunage, told BBC Sandeshaya that the government has resorted to the "same old game" of blaming the missing journalist of staging a disappearance drama.

"The role of a responsible government is to investigate any disappearance of a citizen, let alone a journalist, and prove that he is not missing" he said.

© BBC Sinhala