By Nirmala Kannangara
Despite being brutally assassinated in broad daylight six years and eight months ago, investigations into the gruesome murder of the founding Editor of The Sunday Leader newspaper Lasantha Manilal Wickrematunge is yet to make headway.
Wickrematunge was brutally stabbed at Attidiya, by a killer squad of eight riding in four motor cycles, whilst on his way to work on that fateful day of January 8, 2009. One of the pledges the then opposition gave on election platforms in the run up to the January 8th Presidential Election was to launch fresh investigations into Wickrematunge’s murder soon after they form a government. However it is understood that the authorities concerned has not yet decided to initiate the investigation process due to unknown reasons.
Year 2009 started off with horrifying beginnings with oppression of the media allegedly by the State reaching its climax. On Tuesday January 6, 2009 the first oppression began with an arson attack on MTV/MBC network in Depanama, Pannipitiya and all hell broke loose two days later with the brutal slaying of the founding editor of The Sunday Leader Lasantha Wickrematunge on that fateful Thursday, January 8.
Unfortunately, the wave of attacks on journalists did not stop with Wickrematunge’s killing.
Following Wickrematunge’s killing, Rivira Editor Upali Tennakoon was stabbed and almost killed in the presence of his wife causing them to leave Sri Lanka. The following year, senior journalist Prageeth Eknaligoda was abducted and to date there are no evidence whether Eknaligoda is still alive or not.
However, the CID arrested three security force personnel two weeks ago.
Yet, it was neither the beginning nor the end of oppression and violence against media. It was in 2007, the then Deputy Editor and defence columnist of The Nation newspaper Keith Noyahr was abducted and assaulted, allegedly for insightful reporting on the conflict.
Case re-opened
Although the Public Order, Disaster Management and Christian Affairs Minister had repeatedly told The Sunday Leader that Wickrematunge’s hitherto closed case has now been re-opened under a new team of CID officers and that they expect a quick breakthrough, nothing seems to have happened. According to the Minister, the ‘higher echelons’ at the time were involved in this killing and that was why the police was unable to take proper action to apprehend the murderers, and added that the way the CID handled the investigation at that time was appalling. However, from March this year, according to the Minister, the new CID team is looking for fresh evidence.
When asked whether the CID would consider the complaint lodged by former Minister Mervyn Silva on Wickrematunge’s killing, the Minister said that he cannot make any comment on that but would welcome any details into the murder, including information from the slain Editor’s wife – Sonali Samarasinghe Wickrematunge, as she was likely to know more about the assailants who followed them on that fateful day and added that the new CID team would like to know her account of this incident.
Though, the Minister said that he would like to invite Ms. Samarasinghe to obtain any more details over the phone since she lives abroad; the CID was unable to record evidence from her, although she visited Sri Lanka twice this year.
When asked as to why the CID cannot question the then government spokesperson for National Security over the murder, as addressing a press briefing on January 28, 2009 the spokesman, who was also the then Minister of Mass Media stated that he and the then President were aware of the identity of the murderers and that the latter would make the facts known on February 15, 2009, the present Minister said that he was not aware of such a statement made but ascertained that he would inform the CID to take the necessary action.
“If the former government spokesperson for National Security has made such a statement, he has to be questioned. We will be going into the bottom to unearth all evidence as we know there are big-wigs that are said to have been involved in this murder,” the Minister claimed.
Irreparable loss
Wickrematunge was stabbed on his neck and head in broad daylight in close proximity to the highly-secured Air Force Base, Ratmalana and succumbed to the brain injuries he sustained, at the Colombo South Teaching Hospital in Kalubowila the same afternoon, creating an irreparable loss to press freedom in general and to investigative journalism in particular.
Wickrematunge, who was a vocal critic of abuse of power and corruption of the then government, was subjected to intimidation on several occasions. His brainchild – The Sunday Leader newspaper was once sealed, followed by continuous bomb attacks on the press to stop him from carrying out investigative reporting on nepotism, corruption and abuse of power in the country.
Within hours of Wickrematunge’s assassination, the then President promised a full inquiry pledging to bring the perpetrators to justice. There had been no meaningful investigations; no trace of the vehicles used in the assassination, no call made for information on the murder weapon, whilst efforts were made to give different versions for the cause of death, to deliberately derail any future investigation.
However, later four police teams were appointed to conduct investigations and two suspects who were believed to have had a link to the assassination were taken into custody together with Wickrematunge’s mobile phone that went missing after the attack.
Out of the two suspects apprehended, Pitchai Jesudasan ‘died’ while in custody, and the second suspect Kandegedara Piyawansa was released by the police due to insufficient evidence.
Released after ‘statement’
Piyawansa, a former military intelligence officer, was released on bail in 2010 after he claimed in open court the need for him to make a dock statement on Wickrematunge’s assassination. He was then taken to the Magistrate’s chamber where he had reportedly made a ‘statement’, after which he was released on bail!
Although lawyers appearing for Wickrematunge’s interests made several attempts to get a copy of Piyawansa’s statement, it was denied with the CID stating that the statement had been referred to the IGP to conduct further investigations.
The case was then handed over to the Terrorism Investigations Department (TID) of the Police. Repeated requests by the lawyers for a copy of Piyawansa’s statement were denied by the TID claiming that it would hamper the progress of the investigation. Since then, the police have been unable to make any arrests in relation to the suspects involved in the assassination.
Meanwhile, the sudden demise of 40-year-old Pitchai Jesudasan, the main suspect in the Wickrematunge murder case, also raised many questions. Jesudasan was arrested by the TID on February 26, 2010 at his residence, No. 31, Magastota Estate, Ruwan Eliya, Nuwara Eliya for the alleged involvement in terrorist activities.
He was later sent to the Boossa Camp after interrogation at the Secretariat Building, Colombo 1. He had then been transferred to Welikada Magazine Prison and was an inmate there till his sudden death occurred on Saturday October 15.
According to the ‘B’ Report submitted to the courts by the TID, dated March 30, 2010, P. Jesudasan of 31, Magastota Estate, Nuwara Eliya and Kandegedara Piyawansa of 42/ 28 Katuwana, Nuwara Eliya were arrested on suspicion for the murder of Lasantha Wickrematunge and attempted murders of the then Editor of the Rivira newspaper Upali Tennakoon and Deputy Editor for the Nation – Keith Noyahr.
In relation to Wickrematunge’s murder, police charged that Jesudasan’s national ID had been used by Kandegedera Piyawansa to obtain five SIM cards which were later believed to have been used by a five-man hit squad who trailed and murdered Wickrematunge on January 8, 2009. However, Jesudason, as far back as August 23, 2008, had reported the loss of his National ID to Grama Niladhari of Ruwan Eliya, S. M. P. S. Samarakoon.
However, after the bailout, The Sunday Leader reliably learns that Piyawansa is now back in the army and all attempts made by the CID to question Piyawansa to obtain more details have been prevented by the Sri Lanka Army.
Investigations continuing!
Following the incident, the police later said that it sought public assistance for a breakthrough into the killing. According to a former Police Spokesman, since the general public was not co-operating with the police for a breakthrough, the police have had to depend on the circumstantial and scientific evidence. When the list of these horrendous crimes against the media was referred to Police Spokesperson, his standard response was ‘Investigations are continuing’! There is no need to over-highlight the police inaction and the lax attitude of the law enforcement authorities.
After the former Defence Spokesman’s statement that he and the then President were aware of the identity of Wickrematunge’s murderers and that the latter would make the names public on February 15; wife of the slain Editor-in-Chief Sonali Samarasinghe Wickrematunge, in a letter dated March 15, 2009 addressed to the IGP, requested that a statement be recorded from the Defence Spokesman to ascertain the identity of her late husband’s assassins, a request which had not yet been met.
The letter further states, ‘… however, despite over six weeks having passed since the Defence Spokesman’s statement, no announcement has been made nor have any suspects been named or apprehended.’
She has further stated that although it has been over two months since her husband was killed, there has been no credible breakthrough up to date, no announcement has been made, no murder weapon, no suspects been named or apprehended and no post mortem report has still been made public.
The letter also stated, “Despite your threats and the physical attacks on Lasantha and the newspapers we edited, we did not run scared. We continued to expose one scandal after another in your government, ranging from graft and corruption to wastage of public funds and gross excesses on the part of yourself and your brothers.”
“No one can pretend that the Leader newspapers were singled out as a special case. Under your presidency, violence against journalists has become commonplace. Your government has been forced publicly to accept in Parliament that nine journalists have been murdered in Sri Lanka during the past two years of your presidency (although) International agencies put this figure at 16. Dozens of others have disappeared, suffered physical assault, been arbitrarily detained without trial or been forced to flee overseas for fear of their lives. Numerous other media institutions have been violently attacked in commando-style raids and, in some cases, their employees slaughtered in cold blood”.
Not police duty
When the police was contacted at the time, to find out whether they questioned Defence Spokesman over a statement made by him in connection with the assassination of Wickrematunge, the then Police Spokesman said that the police do not have a right to question a Minister over a public statement made by him.
“This is just a statement made by a minister at a press briefing. Although Wickrematunge’s wife has made a request to the IGP to record a statement from the Defence Spokesman, there is no necessity to do so as it was a mere statement made by him. It was the responsibility of the journalists to question the Minister over that issue but not the duty of the police to do so,” he (former Police Spokesperson) told The Sunday Leader.
It is the fervent request and prayer from all law abiding citizens of this country to bring Wickrematunge’s murderers to book at the earliest as it is alleged that certain quarters of law enforcement authorities desire to see the files into this brutal murder closed once and for all.
Courtesy:The Sunday Leader