Banned Books Week
SRI LANKA
J.S. Tissainayagam
Journalist Detained
NEW! Petition (PDF)
J.S. Tissainayagam, a Sri Lankan journalist, has been detained arbitrarily by the Terrorist Investigation Division (TID) of the Sri Lankan Police in Colombo since 7 March 2008. Although the authorities claim that he is being held on suspicion of involvement with the armed opposition group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, he has yet to be charged with any crime.
Mr Tissainayagam is known to suffer from a serious eye condition that could recur under high levels of stress or exposure to extreme levels of light. If not properly treated, a recurrence of the condition could lead to blindness. While he was seen by an eye specialist on 9 May, as of August he has not been given glasses that the specialist prescribed to prevent further deterioration of his eyesight, nor has he been seen by a specialist again.
Mr Tissainayagam reportedly has been granted access to his lawyer only twice since he has been detained. Both times, a TID officer was present.
For the past 25 years, Sri Lanka has been wracked by a civil war between the security forces (who are mostly from the majority Sinhalese community) and the armed Tamil opposition group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, who are seeking an independent state for the Tamil minority in the north and east of the island. A ceasefire was negotiated in 2002 but has since broken down.
Since the resumption of fighting, journalists and other media workers have been prime targets for attack. At least 10 media workers have been the victims of unlawful killings since the beginning of 2006; one allegedly has disappeared in the custody of the security forces, while others have been tortured and arbitrarily detained. Emergency regulations issued by the Sri Lankan President have been used to silence critical media and generally violate freedom of expression in Sri Lanka, including through detention without charge or trial for periods lasting up to 18 months.
Please request that the Sri Lankan government release J.S. Tissainayagam immediately and unconditionally, unless he is to be charged promptly with a recognizable crime. Ask that while he is in detention he should not be tortured or ill-treated; in particular, he should be provided the ongoing specialist care his eye condition requires. He also should be provided with continuing regular access to his family and lawyer.
His Excellency President Mahinda Rajapaksa
Presidential Secretariat
Colombo 1
Sri Lanka
Salutation: Your Excellency
Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya
Embassy of the Democratic Socialist
Republic of Sri Lanka
2148 Wyoming Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20008
Salutation: Your Excellency
Airmail postage abroad: 94¢
