In the light of my criticisms of the World Association of Newspapers (see below) I wanted to make it crystal clear that I believe the organisation has terrific strengths. Most importantly, its world-wide fight for freedom of the press is second to none. Both the president Gavin O'Reilly and the chief executive Timothy Balding have spoken out against states that allow journalists to be murdered with impunity, states that routinely jail journalists and states that pressure newspaper publishers and editors to conform.
Their championing of Chinese journalists in recent years has been exemplary. In the video they screened at the start of the conference about the global threats to press freedom there was also a reference to the rapidly worsening situation in Sri Lanka.
More evidence of the Sri Lankan government's worrying behaviour towards journalists comes today from the International News Safety Institute. INSI has expressed its shock and alarm at the repeated bellicose official statements aimed at journalists by the defence ministry. It has labelled journalists critical of the war effort against Tamil rebels as "enemies of the state" and said it would take "all necessary measures to stop this journalistic treachery". The statement on the ministry's website singles out the Free Media Movement (FMM), a prominent local rights group, for particular criticism.
I am sure that WAN will also offer support to the beleaguered journalists of Sri Lanka. Last year it wrote a strong letter of protest to the prime minister, Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, about the undermining of press freedom. It's time for another letter, I think, and support for INSI's United Nations initiative.
