SLBC’s savage attack on media freedom

|SLBC WATCH

(March 28, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) In a program entitled ‘Rata Yana Atha – with Hudsan Samasinghe’ which aired on Saturday (27th of March) was a long and direct attack on media freedom. Under the pretext of the Akon affair, the theme of the program was that rata – country - is more important than media freedom. However, rata without media freedom can be a paradise for an authoritarian ruler and slavedom for the people.

Essentially, this program’s theme was the importance of supporting the authoritarian rule of the Rajapaksha regime at all costs, as rata is nothing for Hudsan Samarasinghe than this regime.

The recent attack on Sirasa TV, organized with the assistance of the police, by a goon squad acting on political directions, was portrayed as an attempt to protect the ethical foundations and the culture of Sri Lanka. Over and over again, the need for protecting the ethics of the rata was emphasized and the media institutions like Sirasa were portrayed as an ongoing onslaught on the ethical foundations and the religious culture of Sri Lanka.

This is quite inkeeping with the policy relating to media of the Rajapaksha regime, which, over a long period of time now, is carrying on a most comprehensive attack on journalists, by way of assassinations and other forms of intimidation, and portraying journalists as a threat to the national security. Suppression of free media and the abuse of the state media by the government have been characteristic of the policy regarding the media by the present government.

Yesterday’s program took this attack further by trying to create an ideological foundation against media freedoms. Rata was presented as being attacked by the media. What is this rata if the people of the country do not have the freedom to know what is taking place and also lack freedom to speak freely about the affairs of the rata? Is rata unrelated to the people? Is it a privilege of those who rule the rata to keep secrets how the rata is being ruled? Are the discussions on corruption and deception practiced on the people being censored now as an attack on the rata?
Ever repeated use of rata rata rata rata by the President and by the state media apparatus seems nothing other than an attempt the create censorship on the people themselves. In a democracy, rata only means the best interests of the people.

However, the rata is now being used to signify only the interests of the ruler.
All attempts at freedom of thought and expression are portrayed as a conspiracy. It is quite characteristic of a serfdom to treat thinking and free expression as conspiracy. Every citizen who becomes critical of the ruler’s attempt to usurp his freedoms is portrayed as a conspirator against the rata

Following the attack on Sirasa TV, Lakshman Hullugalle, the Director General of the Media Center of National Security, attempted to portray the attack as organized by a Buddhist group. This was followed by Professor G.L. Peiris, Government Spokesperson, who attempted to justify the police inaction as a legitimate use of police discretion. Obviously, the government was heavily involved in creating justifications for total failure at law enforcement in this instance. It was one more instance indicative of direct state involvement in violence. In that background, Hudsan Samarasinghe’s program attempted to add a moral justification to the attack on Sirasa TV as an act of defense of the nation’s moral foundations and culture.

These kinds of savage attacks on media freedom are characteristic of fascist and military regimes. The former Chief Justice of Sri Lanka, Sarath Silva, has pointed out that the country is moving towards a situation similar to Burma. In fact, the trend is not new. Sri Lanka has moved quite close to Burma in many ways. Above all, the deliberate use of violence by state agents themselves against the people is so frequent that every kind of assertion of the rights of the citizen is now turning out to be a dangerous exercise.

Rata is becoming a less and less meaningful expression for the freedom loving citizens. It has only become a cynical expression of greed, abuse of power and savage treatment of the people. Under the chairmanship of Hudsan Samarasinghe, SLBC is used as part of this savagery.