The Sunday Leader editor Mr. Lasantha Wickramatunga passed away a moment ago at the Kalubowila Teaching Hospital after a valiant effort by the doctors in trying to save his life.
It is indeed sad news when a human being has been killed prior to their time.
It is sad even when a person with a twisted mind and a strong anti-Sri Lankan agenda like Mr. Lasantha Wickramatunga, gets killed.
Of course if Mr. Wickramatunga has been alive to write in his paper or to make expert opinions on the ‘dismal situation in Sri Lanka’, he would be firing all his guns (actually pens) about how the Sri Lankan government is directly or indirectly responsible… And he probably would be immensely pleased to see his NGO buddies getting the maximum political millage out of his demise.
As a side note, it is enlightening to see that Sirasa News First finds this ‘single death’ a ‘breaking-news worthy’ item after their lack of interest in the ‘hundreds of deaths of terrorists’ happening in the North.
Maybe an another 5 million rupee reward from Sirasa would be in order?
Lakbima Blog 
January 8, 2009 at 3:02 pm
Lasantha Wickramthunga = terrorist.
Sirasa = Terrorist Organization.
I’m glad to see these maggots are gone.
January 8, 2009 at 3:30 pm
I agree, lowest form oh human life known to man.
January 8, 2009 at 3:40 pm
Senaka, You are cruel man. This guy fought with his pen and mouth and not with gun’s and if you say he was a terrorist, we all are including you!
January 8, 2009 at 3:52 pm
He was an honest and brave man with values that are seen rarely in Colombo. That you annonymously support this dispicably killing does indeed make you lower than any terrorist. May your god punish you with great misfortune (you disgusting pig).
January 8, 2009 at 3:58 pm
Sam Fernando – for you to make such a comment, who are you?? god??
January 8, 2009 at 4:40 pm
Killing a person whether he is a terrorist or not is not right.
Just because Lasantha was outspoken of his beliefs and what he thought was correct, it is right to think he should be murdered.
If anyone supports that, then you are the terrorist.
We live in a Democratic world and freedom of speech is not a crime!
January 8, 2009 at 4:57 pm
The Government killed Lasantha and burned down Sirasa.
This was done by Gotabhaya’s hitsquad. These are the guys who ride around Colombo in the black jeeps with identical numbers.
All of you who voted for the Rajapakse Government, now Lasantha’s blood is on your hands. May you be cursed, as you have cursed this land.
January 8, 2009 at 5:24 pm
Sri Lanka has lost a fearless journalist this I guess is part of Mahinda Chinthanaya. MR and his brothers should be made accountable for this murder. Under his regime so many journalists and aid workers have been masacred, they should be tried in the international court of justice Haig for the crimes commited againt the humanity. Time the IC opens their eyes and take actions against these murderers.
January 8, 2009 at 5:33 pm
Lasantha will be Long gone he was in the USA. That moron didn’t fight with the Pen. His only job was to safe guard the UNP interests, just like the Sirasa’s job is to safeguard the interests of LTTE.
Wake-up you un-Srilankan UNP goons. The main priority in this nation is to finish the WAR. I’m not saying SL govt had contributed to the Lasantha and Sirasa ordeals, but even if it is, so be it. Just like the George Bush’s US govt wiped out over 20 journalists such as Yasser Salihee who were supporting the enemy’s by SO CALLED PEN.
Hope you get the message to those thick fat UNP/LTTE brains one day.
January 8, 2009 at 5:39 pm
Do we really give a F… about Lasantha death or Sirasa’s staged cry baby crap. We got a war to think about . YES THE FINAL COUNT DOWN. Everything else .. WE DO NOT GIVE A F@$&.
January 8, 2009 at 5:59 pm
This proves what many international people have told me. Sri Lankans are illogical and a little bit foolish. Many of the comments above prove it 🙂 Possibly its a fault of our education system where we don’t teach the students to tolerate opposing views. They grow up into adults with the same mentality. The JVP thought they were patriotic in the 80’s when they went on a killing spree. Hitler thought he was a patriot when he killed 4 million jews. Patriots and religious fanatics have brought death to this world many times over than natural disasters.
Keep up the good work people. Disseminate hatred in the name of patriotism. Thanks for letting us know that unpatriotic forces have no right to live 🙂 Only in Sri Lanka folks, only in sri lanka.
January 8, 2009 at 6:03 pm
Even a little bit of education will not change these Morons the way they think and act. Sri Lanka is supposed to be a democratic country but now it really has become a DEMOCRAZY …. god bless lanka and the morons
cheers
January 8, 2009 at 6:24 pm
To those who say that Lasantha is a UNP supporter refer the 2002 archives and you will see how he screwed up UNP. Simply this is the fact, he published the truth and nobody wants to accept it, so he was murdered.
January 8, 2009 at 6:27 pm
mihin war
January 8, 2009 at 6:36 pm
What good is a country where truth has no place? Lasantha Wickramatunga had his faults just like everyone of us does.
But silencing him is silencing silencing ourselves. We never know when we (who-ever we are) will be at the receiving end of violence, discrimination and ignorance – that’s the way of life. And if that was to happen, we always had Lasantha to speak up for us. No More.
May you rest in Peace. You are the lucky one who did not have to live long enough to see the depths of despair this country is sinking into.
January 8, 2009 at 11:09 pm
attack at mtv/mbc complex at depanama was a ruse orchestrated by the management of mtv/mbc in order to collect compensation of over 6 million US$.. because just hours after the alleged attack mtv began transmissions at their new studio complex in rathmalana..
January 9, 2009 at 8:16 am
Attak on Sirasa,
Vechical goging without No. plates.be .What happen to national security.Where is the Police and Checkpoints.
January 9, 2009 at 8:27 am
Value of a human life,
Only Humans know it………………
January 9, 2009 at 8:31 am
Mr Senaka
Post of Doby in Government, Already filled .
January 9, 2009 at 10:57 am
The content of his writing and who gets the upper hand over his writing is a different topic to be discussed.
However the anti-GoSL style of writing has been helping many terra’s though many powder baba’s here cannot understand this (or don’t want to understand).
But none of this is a reason to assassinate him! The Rajapakse Gov could have almost killed virtually by making his claims false one by one. Just like they liberated Kilinochchi!
Anyway, let the time decide who murdered him.
January 9, 2009 at 10:59 am
*The Rajapakse Gov could have almost killed him virtually by making his claims false one by one.*
January 9, 2009 at 1:10 pm
This is a shame on all Sri Lankans. This is sinhala buddhism practised in Sri Lanka. Hela Urumaya , SLFP, all with Sinhala Buddhist back ground endorse this kind of dastardly crimes. Not even our buddhist clergy, speak up against this type of crime. Hide your heads in shame.
January 9, 2009 at 3:43 pm
lasantha was a man who had a backbone. lasantha was Educated. He could argive in any subject. He new what he s talking of. But in this F country a MAN cant survive. Only If u Suck the ass of your boss you can Liva alive. All of us in our countr Miss a MAN who had a Strong power. Any thing said and done lassantha is no more. God bless him to be bone in a good country with his good stents and powers. Not with DOGS
January 10, 2009 at 2:41 pm
death to all terrorists…. including the Sinhalese terrorists.
February 10, 2009 at 2:52 am
I never knew Lasantha at a personal level, except when I met him at a job interview (I didn’t take the job) – He seemed pretty ok. I was neither impressed nor put off. I must admit that as far as I’m concerned, the venom, sarcasm and hatred in his style of writing had little or no appeal (truth or not)- some of the comments above are actually far worse than his writing!!. It’s a shame that such a talented journalist seemed to be burning up with so much negative emotion. Injustice does make people angry. But Lasanta was really something!!
However, no one has the right to take away human life in such a cowardly fashion. I do not point fingers at the government as anyone could have killed him knowing very well where all fingers would point. Nevertheless I would expect the govt. to maximize efforts to catch the culprits especially as they have been implicated. Yes, there is a war and we all appreciate the brave soldiers who sacrifice their lives for us to be sitting at our computers bickering about all sorts of things! This, however, does not mean all else should be forgotten. Having a war does not mean that the rest of the people mean nothing. We just cannot play God or hide behind the excuse of war. This is not acceptable by any standards. Human life should and must have more value.
In a few more months the government will be basking in the victory over the LTTE. The country and its people will be rejoicing amidst the thousands who will be shedding tears for those they loved and lost (or are maimed/crippled for life) along the hard and long journey through the years. …. and Lasantha Wickramatunga will be forgotten. Only those who truly loved him will feel his loss. My heart goes out to them.
February 14, 2009 at 2:47 pm
And then they came for me — Lasantha Wickramatunga
Jan 15 —No other profession calls on its practitioners to lay down their lives for their art save the armed forces and, in Sri Lanka, journalism. In the course of the past few years, the independent media have increasingly come under attack. Electronic and print-media institutions have been burnt, bombed, sealed and coerced. Countless journalists have been harassed, threatened and killed. It has been my honour to belong to all those categories and now especially the last.
I have been in the business of journalism a good long time. Indeed, 2009 will be The Sunday Leader’s 15th year. Many things have changed in Sri Lanka during that time, and it does not need me to tell you that the greater part of that change has been for the worse. We find ourselves in the midst of a civil war ruthlessly prosecuted by protagonists whose bloodlust knows no bounds. Terror, whether perpetrated by terrorists or the state, has become the order of the day.
Indeed, murder has become the primary tool whereby the state seeks to control the organs of liberty. Today it is the journalists, tomorrow it will be the judges. For neither group have the risks ever been higher or the stakes lower.
Why then do we do it? I often wonder that. After all, I too am a husband, and the father of three wonderful children. I too have responsibilities and obligations that transcend my profession, be it the law or journalism. Is it worth the risk?
Many people tell me it is not. Friends tell me to revert to the bar, and goodness knows it offers a better and safer livelihood. Others, including political leaders on both sides, have at various times sought to induce me to take to politics, going so far as to offer me ministries of my choice. Diplomats, recognising the risk journalists face in Sri Lanka, have offered me safe passage and the right of residence in their countries.
Whatever else I may have been stuck for, I have not been stuck for choice.
But there is a calling that is yet above high office, fame, lucre and security. It is the call of conscience.
The Sunday Leader has been a controversial newspaper because we say it like we see it: whether it be a spade, a thief or a murderer, we call it by that name. We do not hide behind euphemism. The investigative articles we print are supported by documentary evidence thanks to the public-spiritedness of citizens who at great risk to themselves pass on this material to us.
We have exposed scandal after scandal, and never once in these 15 years has anyone proved us wrong or successfully prosecuted us.
The free media serve as a mirror in which the public can see itself sans mascara and styling gel. From us you learn the state of your nation, and especially its management by the people you elected to give your children a better future. Sometimes the image you see in that mirror is not a pleasant one. But while you may grumble in the privacy of your armchair, the journalists who hold the mirror up to you do so publicly and at great risk to themselves.
That is our calling, and we do not shirk it.
Every newspaper has its angle, and we do not hide the fact that we have ours. Our commitment is to see Sri Lanka as a transparent, secular, liberal democracy. Think about those words, for they each has profound meaning.
Transparent because government must be openly accountable to the people and never abuse their trust.
Secular because in a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural society such as ours, secularism offers the only common ground by which we might all be united.
Liberal because we recognise that all human beings are created different, and we need to accept others for what they are and not what we would like them to be. And democratic… well, if you need me to explain why that is important, you’d best stop buying this paper.
The Sunday Leader has never sought safety by unquestioningly articulating the majority view. Let’s face it, that is the way to sell newspapers. On the contrary, as our opinion pieces over the years amply demonstrate, we often voice ideas that many people find distasteful.
For example, we have consistently espoused the view that while separatist terrorism must be eradicated, it is more important to address the root causes of terrorism, and urged government to view Sri Lanka’s ethnic strife in the context of history and not through the telescope of terrorism. We have also agitated against state terrorism in the so-called war against terror, and made no secret of our horror that Sri Lanka is the only country in the world routinely to bomb its own citizens.
For these views we have been labelled traitors, and if this be treachery, we wear that label proudly.
Many people suspect that The Sunday Leader has a political agenda: it does not. If we appear more critical of the government than of the opposition it is only because we believe that – pray excuse cricketing argot – there is no point in bowling to the fielding side. Remember that for the few years of our existence in which the UNP was in office, we proved to be the biggest thorn in its flesh, exposing excess and corruption wherever it occurred.
Indeed, the steady stream of embarrassing exposés we published may well have served to precipitate the downfall of that government.
Neither should our distaste for the war be interpreted to mean that we support the Tigers. The LTTE are among the most ruthless and bloodthirsty organisations ever to have infested the planet. There is no gainsaying that it must be eradicated. But to do so by violating the rights of Tamil citizens, bombing and shooting them mercilessly, is not only wrong but shames the Sinhalese, whose claim to be custodians of the dhamma is forever called into question by this savagery, much of which is unknown to the public because of censorship.
What is more, a military occupation of the country’s north and east will require the Tamil people of those regions to live eternally as second-class citizens, deprived of all self-respect. Do not imagine that you can placate them by showering ‘development’ and ‘reconstruction’ on them in the post-war era. The wounds of war will scar them forever, and you will also have an even more bitter and hateful Diaspora to contend with. A problem amenable to a political solution will thus become a festering wound that will yield strife for all eternity.
If I seem angry and frustrated, it is only because most of my countrymen — and all of the government — cannot see this writing so plainly on the wall.
It is well known that I was on two occasions brutally assaulted, while on another my house was sprayed with machinegun fire. Despite the government’s sanctimonious assurances, there was never a serious police inquiry into the perpetrators of these attacks, and the attackers were never apprehended.
In all these cases, I have reason to believe the attacks were inspired by the government. When finally I am killed, it will be the government that kills me.
The irony in this is that, unknown to most of the public, Mahinda and I have been friends for more than a quarter century. Indeed, I suspect that I am one of the few people remaining who routinely addresses him by his first name and uses the familiar Sinhala address oya when talking to him.
Although I do not attend the meetings he periodically holds for newspaper editors, hardly a month passes when we do not meet, privately or with a few close friends present, late at night at President’s House. There we swap yarns, discuss politics and joke about the good old days. A few remarks to him would, therefore, be in order here.
Mahinda, when you finally fought your way to the SLFP presidential nomination in 2005, nowhere were you welcomed more warmly than in this column. Indeed, we broke with a decade of tradition by referring to you throughout by your first name. So well known were your commitments to human rights and liberal values that we ushered you in like a breath of fresh air.
Then, through an act of folly, you got yourself involved in the Helping Hambantota scandal. It was after a lot of soul-searching that we broke the story, at the same time urging you to return the money. By the time you did so several weeks later, a great blow had been struck to your reputation. It is one you are still trying to live down.
You have told me yourself that you were not greedy for the presidency. You did not have to hanker after it: it fell into your lap. You have told me that your sons are your greatest joy, and that you love spending time with them, leaving your brothers to operate the machinery of state.
Now, it is clear to all who will see that that machinery has operated so well that my sons and daughter do not themselves have a father.
In the wake of my death I know you will make all the usual sanctimonious noises and call upon the police to hold a swift and thorough inquiry. But like all the inquiries you have ordered in the past, nothing will come of this one, too. For truth be told, we both know who will be behind my death, but dare not call his name. Not just my life, but yours too, depends on it.
Sadly, for all the dreams you had for our country in your younger days, in just three years you have reduced it to rubble. In the name of patriotism you have trampled on human rights, nurtured unbridled corruption and squandered public money like no other president before you. Indeed, your conduct has been like a small child suddenly let loose in a toyshop.
That analogy is perhaps inapt because no child could have caused so much blood to be spilled on this land as you have, or trampled on the rights of its citizens as you do. Although you are now so drunk with power that you cannot see it, you will come to regret your sons having so rich an inheritance of blood. It can only bring tragedy.
As for me, it is with a clear conscience that I go to meet my Maker. I wish, when your time finally comes, you could do the same. I wish.
As for me, I have the satisfaction of knowing that I walked tall and bowed to no man. And I have not travelled this journey alone. Fellow journalists in other branches of the media walked with me: most of them are now dead, imprisoned without trial or exiled in far-off lands.
Others walk in the shadow of death that your presidency has cast on the freedoms for which you once fought so hard. You will never be allowed to forget that my death took place under your watch. As anguished as I know you will be, I also know that you will have no choice but to protect my killers: you will see to it that the guilty one is never convicted. You have no choice.
I feel sorry for you, and Shiranthi will have a long time to spend on her knees when next she goes for confession for it is not just her own sins which she must confess, but those of her extended family that keeps you in office.
As for the readers of The Sunday Leader, what can I say but thank you for supporting our mission. We have espoused unpopular causes, stood up for those too feeble to stand up for themselves, locked horns with the high and mighty so swollen with power that they have forgotten their roots, exposed corruption and the waste of your hard-earned tax rupees, and made sure that whatever the propaganda of the day, you were allowed to hear a contrary view.
For this I — and my family — have now paid the price that I have long known I will one day have to pay. I am — and have always been — ready for that. I have done nothing to prevent this outcome: no security, no precautions.
I want my murderer to know that I am not a coward like he is, hiding behind human shields while condemning thousands of innocents to death. What am I among so many? It has long been written that my life would be taken, and by whom. All that remains to be written is when.
That The Sunday Leader will continue fighting the good fight, too, is written. For I did not fight this fight alone. Many more of us have to be — and will be — killed before The Leader is laid to rest. I hope my assassination will be seen not as a defeat of freedom but an inspiration for those who survive to step up their efforts. Indeed, I hope that it will help galvanise forces that will usher in a new era of human liberty in our beloved motherland.
I also hope it will open the eyes of your president to the fact that however many are slaughtered in the name of patriotism, the human spirit will endure and flourish. Not all the Rajapaksas combined can kill that.
People often ask me why I take such risks and tell me it is a matter of time before I am bumped off. Of course I know that: it is inevitable. But if we do not speak out now, there will be no one left to speak for those who cannot, whether they be ethnic minorities, the disadvantaged or the persecuted. An example that has inspired me throughout my career in journalism has been that of the German theologian, Martin Niemöller.
In his youth he was an anti-Semite and an admirer of Hitler. As Nazism took hold in Germany, however, he saw Nazism for what it was: it was not just the Jews Hitler sought to extirpate, it was just about anyone with an alternate point of view. Niemöller spoke out, and for his trouble was incarcerated in the Sachsenhausen and Dachau concentration camps from 1937 to 1945, and very nearly executed. While incarcerated, Niemöller wrote a poem that, from the first time I read it in my teenage years, stuck hauntingly in my mind:
First they came for the Jews
and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for the Communists
and I did not speak out because I was not a Communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists
and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for me
and there was no one left to speak out for me.
If you remember nothing else, remember this: The Leader is there for you, be you Sinhalese, Tamil, Muslim, low-caste, homosexual, dissident or disabled. Its staff will fight on, unbowed and unafraid, with the courage to which you have become accustomed. Do not take that commitment for granted. Let there be no doubt that whatever sacrifices we journalists make, they are not made for our own glory or enrichment: they are made for you. Whether you deserve their sacrifice is another matter.
As for me, God knows I tried.
* An obituary written by Lasantha Wickramatunga himself, published posthumously in the Sunday Leader on Jan 11, three days after his death. Wickramatunga, a staunch critic of the war on Tamil rebels, was shot at close range near the capital Colombo. The attackers escaped even though the murder took place in an area near an airbase where the military has a large security presence.
February 22, 2009 at 5:46 am
To those murderers who were responsible for this innocent mans death, SHAME ON YOU and dont continue to call yourselves Buddhists.
April 7, 2009 at 7:20 pm
LASANTHA’S SUNDAY LEADER NOMINATED FOR FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AWARD
Freedom of Expression Awards 2009 shortlist announced
http://awards.indexoncensorship.org
17Mar09 – 14:58
Index on Censorship today announces the shortlist for the 2009 Freedom of Expression Awards.
The awards, presented in association with the Economist, the Guardian, Bindmans and the Robert Gavron Trust, honour those who have furthered the cause of freedom of expression and battled censorship around the world.
Prizes are awarded in five categories: books, film, journalism, and law and campaigning.
Previous winners include Arat Dink, Anna Politkovskaya and Edward Said.
This year’s shortlist includes Sri Lanka’s Sunday Leader newspaper, Ma Jian’s novel Beijing Coma, and Steve McQueen’s film, Hunger.
The awards will be presented on 21 April at Kings Place, London. The ceremony will be hosted by Index on Censorship Chair Jonathan Dimbleby, with a keynote speech by Sir David Hare.
Index on Censorship Chief Executive John Kampfner commented: ‘The Freedom of Expression Awards focus attention on activists, writers and film makers around the world who actively promote free expression, often in the most difficult circumstances. Index on Censorship is delighted to recognise their efforts at this increasingly high-profile annual event.’
To book your tickets for the awards show, and to learn more about the nominees, go to http://awards.indexoncensorship.org or alternatively contact Ade Lukes at ade.lukes@indexoncensorship.org or Padraig Reidy at padraig.rediy@indexoncensorship.org
The full short lists for 2009 are:
The T R Fyvel Book Award nominees are:
Rebel’s Hour by Lieve Joris (Atlantic Books)
Bejing Coma by Ma Jian (Chatto and Windus)
Human Smoke by Nicholson Baker (Simon and Schuster)
A Field Guide for Female Interrogators by Coco Fusco (Seven Stories Press)
The Bindmans Law and Campaigning Award nominees are:
Gamal Eid, Egyptian human rights champion and regional campaigner for freedom of expression.
Harrison Nkomo, a human rights lawyer defending journalists in Zimbabwe.
Harry Roque, a campaigner for human rights and media freedom in the Philippines.
Malak Imtiaz, a human rights lawyer and activist and the current president of the National Human Rights Society (HAKAM) of Malaysia.
The Index on Censorship Film Award nominees are:
Hunger, Dir. Steve McQueen (Pathe).
The Devil Came on Horseback, Dir. Ricki Stern (Dogwoof).
Terror’s Advocate, Dir. Barbet Schroeder (Artificial Eye).
On the Verge, directed and distributed by SchMovies.
The Guardian Journalism Award nominees are:
The Sunday Leader, a platform for some of Sri Lanka’s most outspoken journalism despite its editor’s assassination.
Sanjuana Martinez, an award-winning freelance journalist investigating and exposing corruption in Mexico.
Tamer Almishall, the youngest reporter for the Arabic television network, Al Jazeera, who reported from the recent invasion and bombardment of Gaza.
Sakit and Genimet Zakhidov, who are both serving prison sentences for their dedication to freedom of speech after writing articles and poetry critical of Azerbaijan’s authoritarian government.
The Economist New Media Award nominees are:
Global Voices Advocacy, an international network for bloggers and activists.
Psiphon, a computer programme and network created to circumvent censorship, Canada.
Hossein ‘Hodder’ Derakhshan an Iranian blogger.
Mizzima, a Burmese-exile run news website.
June 24, 2009 at 11:53 am
He was a brilliant amazing human beign he put his life at stake to protect the country by revealing the truth what a stand up man.Theres no one like him,He was strong in his faith in God.and was a servant of Christ.I met
Lasantha once and he is such a great guy.Kind,Humble and down to earth iv met other polaticians to but hes very down to eath and he always helped the poor and didnt care what others thought.Thousands worlwide love this man and look up to him,He will be remembered in history as an iconic hero.Jesus loves you Lasantha!