Row over Sri Lanka editor's murder grows as diplomat censured

by Sanjay Jha | January 14, 2009 at 03:07 am

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The Sri Lankan government is being held responsible for the death of Lasantha Manilal Wickramatunga, editor of the Sunday Leader newspaper, who was killed on 8 January by two unknown gunmen on his way to work. The funeral of the slain journalist was held yesterday, attended by more than 8000 people, including fellow journalists, human rights activists, religious and political leaders, as well as ordinary people.

The United States, the European Union, Canada and India slammed the murder, calling on the Sri Lankan government to rapidly shed light on the affair.

Sri Lanka's government censured a senior international diplomat after he spoke at the funeral of a newspaper editor whose murder has been blamed on the island's rulers, officials said on Wednesday.

German ambassador Jurgen Weerth was ordered to the Colombo foreign office and told of Sri Lanka's anger over his graveside eulogy for Lasantha Wickrematunga, officials who declined to be named told reporters.

Wickrematunga, who was shot by unknown gunmen as he drove to work, was the editor of the Sunday Leader and was fiercely critical of government policy, especially its bloody and costly war against Tamil rebels.

"Weerth was summoned to the Foreign Ministry on Tuesday and the Foreign Secretary (Palitha Kohona) expressed Sri Lanka's displeasure and concern over his remarks," a source at the ministry said.

He said the government felt that the funeral had been turned into a political event. There was no immediate comment from the German embassy in Colombo.

Weerth, who is the dean of Colombo-based diplomats, said in his brief eulogy that the diplomats had failed to speak out earlier in support of media freedom in Sri Lanka.