Bringing back exiled journalists:
Action, not rhetoric needed
by Ruki Fernando
The Sri Lankan Government has announced that it had dispatched
emergency supplies and support personnel to Nepal a day after the
devastating earthquake and that there would be further materials and
personnel in the coming days. The government also announced that Sri
Lankans who had been in Nepal, can come back in the same flight. The
solidarity towards a neighbour in distress and duty towards some Sri
Lankan citizens is admirable.
Ever
since the new President came into power, there have been public
statements inviting exiled journalists to return home. But what the
government has actually done to assist those who want to return is not
clear.
In particular, it's not clear what the government and the Sri Lankan
Embassy in Nepal had done to assist exiled journalists in Nepal to
return to Sri Lanka, especially to those who had made it clear they want
to return immediately after the new government came into power in
January.
I have been in touch with three such journalists throughout this
period, till today.
Despite numerous appeals by them and on behalf of them by media
freedom organizations, friends and colleagues, there was no clear
response within the 100 days of the new government. Appeals to assist
them to return intensified after the earthquake.
Treated
The question whether the journalists exiled in Nepal are treated in
the same way as other Sri Lankans was raised in parliament on 27th
April, with an allegation that the Sri Lankan Ambassador in Nepal was
not in favour of assisting exiled journalists to return to Sri Lanka,
but the Foreign Minister assured that steps have been taken to bring
them back within this week.
Although the Foreign Minister claimed that the reason for the delay
is the expiry of the validity of their passports, the journalists I have
been in touch with assured me that their passports are valid.
I hope that at least now, these commitments will result in concrete
actions, and they will be able to return home.
A particular challenge that exiled journalists / human rights
defenders (or any UNHCR recognized refugee) in Nepal face in returning
home was to pay "overstay visa fees" and associated penalties. Although
they have been recognised by UNHCR as refugees,
Nepali government simply consider them as tourists who overstayed
their visas and thus, expect them to pay the overstay visa fees. All
three of them had to sacrifice their careers, their income.
When they went to Nepal, they were dependent on adhoc financial
support from friends and colleagues. They are legally barred from being
employed.
They were later recognized as refugees and received a meager
allowance of less than US$ 60 per person per month from UNHCR. There is
no way the three of them could pay about US$ 15,000 and also find costs
of tickets and other expenses.
The human tragedy
Each person in exile has a different story, some may even have abused
the situation to seek better lives overseas. But the situation is
different for those discussed here.
Shantha Wijesooriya is a Sri Lankan investigative journalist who had
been detained, threatened and the news websites he was working for have
been subjected to arson attacks and Police raids.
One of his former editor lives in exile due to death threats and his
colleagues had been arrested. He finally left the country after narrowly
escaping an abduction attempt in 2012.
Jayampathy Bulathsinhala is a Sri Lankan human rights defender who
ran a printing press, publishing many human rights and social justice
oriented materials.
He has been involved in human rights and social justice work for
decades. In 2010, the Sri Lankan Government enacted an anti democratic
law strengthening presidential powers and weakening independent
institutions. In support of opposition parties and civil society
campaigns against this, Jayampathy published a poster painting the then
president as a dictator.
He, his wife Kumudu, and colleagues were arrested and when they tried
to file a fundamental rights case, they faced threats, and were
compelled to go into exile. Kumudu has also been working for a news
website while in exile.
When Shantha escaped an abduction attempt and fled the country, he
was working for Lanka X News, a website run by the United National
Party, then in opposition, and the present Foreign Minister, Mangala
Samaraweera, was reported as the Chief Executive Officer / Coordinator.
Samaraweera had also accepted that the poster printed by Jayampathy that
led to his arrest and exile was done so on his instructions.
Assist
Even as I'm happy about the Sri Lankan Government's emergency support
towards Nepalese and to assist other Sri Lankan citizens who were in
Nepal to come home, I hope the Sri Lankan Government (in Colombo and the
Embassy in Nepal) will also assist Shantha, Jayampathy and Kumudu to
come home, by taking into consideration the particular challenges they
face, their contributions to promoting democracy and human rights in Sri
Lanka and the sufferings they had undergone.
It has been reported that the Sri Lankan Prime Minister has been in
touch with his Nepali counterpart and the Acting Nepali Ambassador in
Colombo.
All foreign missions with their citizens in Nepal are likely to be in
touch with Nepalese authorities, including the Sri Lankan Ambassador in
Nepal.
Undoubtedly, Nepali authorities are overwhelmed with the emergency
situation.
It is hoped that the Sri Lankan government in Colombo and the Embassy
in Nepal will also bring up the situation of the three journalists (and
others) in the conversations with Nepali authorities, work out
modalities, and offer any assistance needed, and facilitate their long
overdue return back to Sri Lanka. I have focused this article only on
three journalists / HRDs who I have been in close touch with me, before
they went into exile. There are also human rights defenders and
journalists in other countries, and possibly even in Nepal, who have
expressed interest to return.
I hope the Sri Lankan Government will go beyond rhetoric and seek
more proactive ways to assist exiled journalists and human rights
defenders to return home.
- Groundviews
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