සාපරාධී අපහාස නීතිය හා විමල් වීරවංශ
Parliament repealed criminal defamation unanimously, though some PA and JVP members clearly opposed it. Replying to Wimal Weerawansa’s attack on Ravaya during the debate, the editorial says Ravaya lost faith in Chandrika Kumaratunga long ago, alleges that Mangala Samaraweera arranged a Press Council ruling for the JVP through its chairman Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, and challenges Weerawansa to answer questions on killings and assaults, the Malimbada shooting and corruption allegations against the President.
සාපරාධී අපහාස නීතිය අවලංගු කිරිමෙන් පමණක් යහපත් රාජ්‍ය පාලනයක් ඇති නොවේ
Repealing the criminal defamation law, used by the executive against journalists, is an important step, but good governance also needs an independent judiciary, public service, audit commission and elections commission. Despite the 17th Amendment and the Constitutional Council, the impeached Chief Justice remains, local polls showed free elections are not yet assured, and the Bribery, Human Rights, Finance and Public Service commissions still run with their old members. The Council must move faster.
මාධ්‍ය ගුරුවරුන්ගේ දැක්මේ දුප්පත්කම
Ivan ridicules Dr Ariyaratne Athugala, head of mass communication at Kelaniya University, who told Dinamina that repealing criminal defamation would be a crime and complained that the media dwell on Rookantha, Chandraleka and Anoja Weerasinghe. Ivan notes that international bodies seek repeal, that the law protects only politicians and officials, and that other laws already cover defamation. He also mentions a Colombo University media lecturer who said on state television, after the North-Western poll rigging, that Sri Lanka had too much media.
ලෙනින් රත්නායක විනය පරික්ෂණය අත්හිටුවන්නැයි ඉල්ලීමක්
In a letter to the Secretary of the Judicial Service Commission, Ivan, as complainant, objects that a one-man inquiry by retired High Court judge K.A.S. Gunatilake into magistrate Lenin Ratnayake is illegal under Article 114(2). He recounts the rape allegations, the Commission’s months of silence, the three-judge committee that upheld Ravaya’s charges, Ratnayake’s 32 months of paid compulsory leave, and asks for the inquiry to be stopped and the committee’s report released to him.
රාවයට වසර 15යි
Marking fifteen years, the piece traces Ravaya from a monthly magazine under J.R. Jayewardene to a broadsheet weekly. It says the paper helped bring Chandrika Kumaratunga to power but then opposed her government, which subjected it to bomb attacks and record criminal defamation cases. It pledges the same scrutiny of a coming UNP government and continued pursuit of Chief Justice Sarath N. Silva, and recalls how Jayewardene and Premadasa responded to its criticism.
රාජ්‍ය ප්‍රජාතන්ත්‍රීය කිරීම
Ivan surveys reform proposals from parties and civil society: the UNP’s four independent commissions, the JVP’s call to abolish the executive presidency and for a state media commission, and the Alliance for Democracy’s conditions for reforming the presidency, on dissolution, appointing the Prime Minister and Cabinet, expulsion of MPs and emergency powers. He adds the Editors’ Guild proposals on criminal defamation, freedom of information and an independent Press Council, citing Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe’s dual roles.
යෝජිත නීති ප්‍රතිසංස්කරණ මහජනතාවට රහසක් කොට තබාගන්නේ ඇයි?
The government is reforming the whole legal system with a Rs. 1,400 million World Bank loan, but without telling the public or Parliament which laws are involved. The piece argues that the reforms serve business interests while ignoring workers, farmers, fundamental rights and good governance, and asks why the four independent commissions, repeal of criminal defamation and a right to information are left out.
Criminal defamation Vs. Media freedom
Media freedom is treated as an essential part of a democratic system, and by accepted standards Sri Lanka is among the countries with least of it. The media minister told his first press conference that the government had been brought to power mainly by the media.
ජනමාධ්‍ය නිදහසට එරෙහිව සාපරාධී අපහාස නීතිය
Although its first media minister Dharmasiri Senanayake called the People’s Alliance a government brought to power by journalists, it has reformed only parliamentary privilege law and, instead of repealing criminal defamation, filed twelve cases against editors, six of them against Ravaya. Sinha Ratnatunga and Lasantha Wickrematunge were convicted of defaming the President, who never testified. The editorial contrasts English practice and the Salman Rushdie episode, cites New York Times v. Sullivan, and notes that the 1996 recommendations of the R.K.W. Goonesekere committee were ignored.
ජනමාධ්‍යවේදින්ට ඇණ ගැසීම
The editorial condemns the People’s Alliance’s use of criminal defamation against critical editors, first Sinha Ratnatunga of the Sunday Times and now Lasantha Wickrematunge of the Sunday Leader, both given suspended sentences that leave them one conviction from prison. The government promised to repeal the law; the R.K.W. Goonesekera committee recommended repeal or amendment, a select committee stalled and a multi-party repeal motion was never debated.