{"id":2959,"date":"2011-12-24T16:09:57","date_gmt":"2011-12-24T16:09:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/colombotelegraph.com\/?p=2959"},"modified":"2016-09-17T00:40:15","modified_gmt":"2016-09-16T19:10:15","slug":"wikileaks-fonseka-and-igp-labelled-journalists-as-traitors-four-journalists-came-to-embassy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wikileaks-fonseka-and-igp-labelled-journalists-as-traitors-four-journalists-came-to-embassy\/","title":{"rendered":"WikiLeaks: Four journalists came to Embassy"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cSince the Government’s victory against the LTTE, GSL officials have begun openly criticizing journalists that it claims were on the LTTE payroll. Public comments by the Army Commander and Inspector General of Police have heightened concerns among journalists for their safety. Since May 26, four journalists have come to the Embassy to relay their concerns for their safety and to request Embassy assistance.\u201d the US Embassy Colombo informed Washington.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Dharmasiri told us he desired to stay in Sri Lanka, but would like assistance in paying for a safe house.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Colombo Telegraph found the leaked cable from the WikiLeak database. The cable is classified as \u201cCONFIDENTIAL\u201d and discuses the media suppression situation just after winning the war against LTTE. The cable was written on June 5, 2009 by the Charge D\u2019Affaires James R. Moore.<\/p>\n

The Charge D\u2019Affaires wrote \u201cBeginning on May 27, the Sri Lankan press reported widely comments made by Army Commander Fonseka and the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Jayantha Wickramaratne. Both stated that LTTE cadres now in custody had disclosed the names of journalists who were funded by the LTTE. General Fonseka claimed that most were Sinhalese, some were members of organizations advocating greater media freedom, and some had secret meetings with the LTTE. Both Fonseka and Wickramaratne labeled the journalists as traitors and said that action would be taken against them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Under the subheading \u201cYOUNG JOURNALIST REPORTS SURVEILLANCE; FLEES\u201d James wrote \u201cIn the overheated climate engendered by the officials’ comments, several journalists and members of media organizations expressed to Embassy officers heightened concerns for their personal safety. On May 26, Ruan Pethiyagoda of the Sunday Leader communicated to Emboffs that he was being followed and had gone into hiding. Pethiyagoda had received threats recently after Sri Lankan Government officials learned he was researching a story that involved allegations of corruption on the part of Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa in large armed forces procurement transactions. Pethiyagoda worked closely with Lasantha Wickramatunga, editor of the Sunday Leader, who was slain in January 2009. As Pethiyagoda is an Australian dual national, Emboffs contacted an Australian High Commission officer about the case, who accompanied Pethiyagoda to the airport on May. He is now safely outside of Sri Lanka.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Pethiyagoda had received threats recently after Sri Lankan Government officials learned he was researching a story that involved allegations of corruption on the part of Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa in large armed forces procurement transactions.<\/p><\/div>\n

James wrote \u201cOn May 29, Rosanne Anderson of the Federation of Media Employees Trade Union (FMETU), Lankapeli Dharmasiri of FMETU, and Poddala Jayantha of the Sri Lankan Working Journalists Association met with PAO to discuss their concerns about the statements made by the Army Commander and the IGP. The three journalists expressed fears for their own safety. In particular, they were worried that statements by the Army Commander and the IGP would engender a new wave of violence against journalists by ultranationalist gangs and thugs. The journalists specifically requested assistance in getting Jayantha and his family out of the country. Jayantha had left the country several months ago with support from an EU “Safety Fund” for journalists and human rights defenders, but returned recently because of concerns about his family’s\u00a0security.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Finally, following the meeting, Anderson shared with PAO that she had applied for asylum in Australia. Later, she sent PAO an e-mail requesting asylum in the United States.Post assesses that the threat against Ms. Anderson is less severe.<\/p><\/div>\n

Dharmasiri told PAO that he did not want to leave, explaining that he was one of the lone media advocates remaining in Sri Lanka and wanted to continue his efforts in the country. He requested Embassy assistance to increase security. Finally, following the meeting, Anderson shared with PAO that she had applied for asylum in Australia. Later, she sent PAO an e-mail requesting asylum in the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDharmasiri told us he desired to stay in Sri Lanka, but would like assistance in paying for a safe house. Post will connect Dharmasiri with Internews concerning a safety fund grant to pay for lodging. Post assesses that the threat against Ms. Anderson is less severe, and will await the outcome of her pending application for asylum in Australia before seeking travel funds for her.\u201d he further wrote.<\/p>\n

Under the subheading \u201cDEFENSE JOURNALIST AGAIN FLEES COUNTRY\u201d Charge D\u2019Affaires James R. Moore wrote \u00a0\u201cMilitary affairs analyst Iqbal Athas ceased writing his regular column for the Sunday Times (Colombo) several months ago because of fears of reprisals. He had sought safe haven abroad on several previous occasions, but returned to Sri Lanka and lived in hiding. Athas became fearful after the attack on Poddala Jayantha, telling told Pol Chief that he was being followed by men on motorcycles. On June 2, Athas again fled abroad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Under the subheading \u201cABDUCTION AND BEATING OF MEDIA ACTIVIST\u201d charge wrote \u201cOn the evening of June 1, Jayantha was abducted and beaten by unknown assailants after getting off a bus, on his way home from work. Jayantha suffered two fractures to his left leg. Jayantha told PAO that the assailants shaved his hair and stuffed it in his mouth to muffle his screams. They shoved the hair so deeply that it protruded from his nose.\u00a0Jayantha underwent surgery on June 3rd. According to Jayantha, doctors told him he would be hospitalized for two weeks and that recovery would take three months.\u201d<\/p>\n

Under the section \u201cEMBASSY RESPONSE\u201d James wrote \u201cSince the May 29th meeting, Post is working to assist the three threatened journalists. Embassy continues to press senior Government of Sri Lanka officials to promote and protect media freedom.<\/p>\n

On June 2, following the attack on Jayantha, CDA Moore spoke with Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa. Charge expressed his concern at the most recent assault on a journalist. He reminded Basil that Ambassador Blake, in his farewell call, encouraged the Government to focus on reconciliation and human rights following its military victory against the Tamil Tigers. Charge stressed that the attack on Jayantha was possibly a result of the IGP’s May 29 public announcement that journalists accused of taking payments from the LTTE would be punished. Basil responded that \u2018the public\u2019 is angry that journalists may have been on the LTTE’s payroll, saying the government could not control these passions. Charge countered that if that is the case, it is a result of the IGP’s announcement and the images that were aired at the time. Basil xpressed some sympathy for Podalla, noting that he previously worked in the media unit of the Sri Lankan Freedom Party. Basil said members of the President’s staff visited Jayantha in the hospital.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Basil expressed some sympathy for Podalla, noting that he previously worked in the media unit of the Sri Lankan Freedom Party.<\/p><\/div>\n

However, Basil stopped short of making a firm commitment to provide security for Jayantha and his family, but did say \u2018we are trying to see if he can be moved and provided security.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Placing a comment Charge D\u2019Affaires James R. Moore \u00a0\u201cThe GSL’s victory has emboldened Sinhalese nationalists. As the most recent intemperate statements against journalists indicate, it appears that the Government intends to continue chauvinistic rhetoric it believes will maintain its support among this key constituency. Post expects the media will continue to feel threatened and inclined toward self-censorship. Newspapers such as the Daily Mirror that previously supported the political opposition in their editorial stance, have increasingly become echoes of the government-owned press. Even the outspoken Sunday Leader has muted it anti-government stance and has muted its crusading tone, shying away from the aggressive investigative journalism that was its hallmark. We expect that an increasing number of journalists will come to the Embassy and other foreign missions for support and protection. For many of them, there appear to be few viable alternatives to fleeing the country, at least temporarily. Those who return may find that the threat against them has not diminished, as Jayantha’s case shows.\u201d<\/p>\n

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 000596\r\n\r\nSIPDIS\r\n\r\nDEPARTMENT FOR SCA\/INSB\r\n\r\nE.O. 12958: DECL: 06\/04\/2019\r\nTAGS: PGOV<\/a> PHUM<\/a> PREL<\/a> KPAO<\/a> CE<\/a>\r\nSUBJECT: SRI LANKA: MORE THREATS TO AND ATTACKS ON\r\nJOURNALISTS\r\n\r\nClassified By: CHARGE D'AFFAIRES JAMES R. MOORE, FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AN\r\nD (D)\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>1. (C) SUMMARY: Since the Government's victory against the\r\nLTTE, GSL officials have begun openly criticizing journalists\r\nthat it claims were on the LTTE payroll.  Public comments by\r\nthe Army Commander and Inspector General of Police have\r\nheightened concerns among journalists for their safety. Since\r\nMay 26, four journalists have come to the Embassy to relay\r\ntheir concerns for their safety and to request Embassy\r\nassistance. One of those journalists, Poddala Jayantha, was\r\nlater attacked on June 1 by unknown assailants. The Embassy\r\ncontinues to explore mechanisms to support journalists who\r\nare under threat, and is pushing the Government of Sri Lanka\r\nto ensure their safety and desist from making comments that\r\ncould incite continued violence.  End summary.\r\n\r\nOFFICIALS' COMMENTS CREATE OVERHEATED ATMOSPHERE\r\n--------------------------------------------- ---\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>2. (C) Beginning on May 27, the Sri Lankan press reported\r\nwidely comments made by Army Commander Fonseka and the\r\nInspector General of Police (IGP) Jayantha Wickramaratne.\r\nBoth stated that LTTE cadres now in custody had disclosed the\r\nnames of journalists who were funded by the LTTE.  General\r\nFonseka claimed that most were Sinhalese, some were members\r\nof organizations advocating greater media freedom, and some\r\nhad secret meetings with the LTTE. Both Fonseka and\r\nWickramaratne labeled the journalists as traitors and said\r\nthat action would be taken against them.\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>3. (C) Among the reports, the state-owned television station\r\nITN carried a report on the Inspector General's comments on\r\nits May 28th broadcast. While ITN reported the Inspector\r\nGeneral's remarks, it broadcast images of protests, meetings,\r\nand gatherings of media trade unions and advocacy\r\norganizations.  The camera zoomed in on the faces of\r\nindividual members and leaders of those groups.\r\n\r\nYOUNG JOURNALIST REPORTS SURVEILLANCE; FLEES\r\n--------------------------------------------\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>4. (C) In the overheated climate engendered by the officials'\r\ncomments, several journalists and members of media\r\norganizations expressed to Embassy officers heightened\r\nconcerns for their personal safety.  On May 26, Ruan\r\nPethiyagoda of the Sunday Leader communicated to Emboffs that\r\nhe was being followed and had gone into hiding.  Pethiyagoda\r\nhad received threats recently after Sri Lankan Government\r\nofficials learned he was researching a story that involved\r\nallegations of corruption on the part of Defense Secretary\r\nGothabaya Rajapaksa in large armed forces procurement\r\ntransactions. Pethiyagoda worked closely with Lasantha\r\nWickramatunga, editor of the Sunday Leader, who was slain in\r\nJanuary 2009. As Pethiyagoda is an Australian dual national,\r\nEmboffs contacted an Australian High Commission officer about\r\nthe case, who accompanied Pethiyagoda to the airport on May\r\n\u00b6<\/a>27. He is now safely outside of Sri Lanka.\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>5. (C) On May 29, Rosanne Anderson of the Federation of Media\r\nEmployees Trade Union (FMETU), Lankapeli Dharmasiri of FMETU,\r\nand Poddala Jayantha of the Sri Lankan Working Journalists\r\nAssociation met with PAO to discuss their concerns about the\r\nstatements made by the Army Commander and the IGP. The three\r\njournalists expressed fears for their own safety. In\r\nparticular, they were worried that statements by the Army\r\nCommander and the IGP would engender a new wave of violence\r\nagainst journalists by ultranationalist gangs and thugs. The\r\njournalists specifically requested assistance in getting\r\nJayantha and his family out of the country. Jayantha had left\r\nthe country several months ago with support from an EU\r\n\"Safety Fund\" for journalists and human rights defenders, but\r\nreturned recently because of concerns about his family's\r\nsecurity.  Dharmasiri told PAO that he did not want to leave,\r\n\r\nCOLOMBO 00000596  002 OF 003\r\n\r\nexplaining that he was one of the lone media advocates\r\nremaining in Sri Lanka and wanted to continue his efforts in\r\nthe country. He requested Embassy assistance to increase\r\nsecurity.  Finally, following the meeting, Anderson shared\r\nwith PAO that she had applied for asylum in Australia. Later,\r\nshe sent PAO an e-mail requesting asylum in the United\r\nStates.\r\n\r\nABDUCTION AND BEATING OF MEDIA ACTIVIST\r\n---------------------------------------\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>6. (C) On the evening of June 1, Jayantha was abducted and\r\nbeaten by unknown assailants after getting off a bus, on his\r\nway home from work. Jayantha suffered two fractures to his\r\nleft leg. Jayantha told PAO that the assailants shaved his\r\nhair and stuffed it in his mouth to muffle his screams. They\r\nshoved the hair so deeply that it protruded from his nose.\r\nJayantha underwent surgery on June 3rd. According to\r\nJayantha, doctors told him he would be hospitalized for two\r\nweeks and that recovery would take three months.\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>7. (C) On June 2 Police arrested Lanka E-News editor Benette\r\nRupasinghe and publisher Sandaruwan Senadeera for possible\r\ninvolvement in the attack. According to media contacts, Lanka\r\nE-News, an online Sri Lankan news site, was the first to\r\nreport on the attack. Because the report was so soon after\r\nthe attack, police claimed they had suspicions the two\r\njournalists might be involved, according to the media\r\ncontacts. Rupasinghe and Senadeera were released after\r\nposting bail.\r\n\r\nDEFENSE JOURNALIST AGAIN FLEES COUNTRY\r\n--------------------------------------\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>8. (C) Military affairs analyst Iqbal Athas ceased writing\r\nhis regular column for the Sunday Times (Colombo) several\r\nmonths ago because of fears of reprisals.  He had sought safe\r\nhaven abroad on several previous occasions, but returned to\r\nSri Lanka and lived in hiding.  Athas became fearful after\r\nthe attack on Poddala Jayantha, telling told Pol Chief that\r\nhe was being followed by men on motorcycles.  On June 2,\r\nAthas again fled abroad.\r\n\r\nEMBASSY RESPONSE\r\n----------------\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>9. (C) Since the May 29th meeting, Post is working to assist\r\nthe three threatened journalists.  Embassy continues to press\r\nsenior Government of Sri Lanka officials to promote and\r\nprotect media freedom. On June 2, following the attack on\r\nJayantha, CDA Moore spoke with Presidential Advisor Basil\r\nRajapaksa.  Charge expressed his concern at the most recent\r\nassault on a journalist.  He reminded Basil that Ambassador\r\nBlake, in his farewell call, encouraged the Government to\r\nfocus on reconciliation and human rights following its\r\nmilitary victory against the Tamil Tigers. Charge stressed\r\nthat the attack on Jayantha was possibly a result of the\r\nIGP's May 29 public announcement that journalists accused of\r\ntaking payments from the LTTE would be punished.  Basil\r\nresponded that \"the public\" is angry that journalists may\r\nhave been on the LTTE's payroll, saying the government could\r\nnot control these passions.  Charge countered that if that is\r\nthe case, it is a result of the IGP's announcement and the\r\nimages that were aired at the time.  Basil xpressed some\r\nsympathy for Podalla, noting that he previously worked in the\r\nmedia unit of the Sri Lankan Freedom Party.  Basil said\r\nmembers of the President's staff visited Jayantha in the\r\nhospital.  However, Basil stopped short of making a firm\r\ncommitment to provide security for Jayantha and his family,\r\nbut did say \"we are trying to see if he can be moved and\r\nprovided security.\"\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>10. (C) On June 3, PAO met with Sam de Silva of Internews\r\n(protect).  Internews, an NGO tasked with developing\r\n\r\nCOLOMBO 00000596  003.2 OF 003\r\n\r\nindependent media in Sri Lanka, has now taken over managing\r\nthe \"Safety Fund\" for journalists with support from EU member\r\nstates.  De Silva said that Internews planned to resume\r\nbiweekly meetings of members of the diplomatic missions that\r\nhave provided support to journalists under threat with the\r\ngoal of better coordinating responses.  De Silva was aware of\r\nJayantha's case and had been in contact with him indirectly\r\nsince the attack through another interlocutor. (Note:\r\nInternews provided funding to Jayantha through the safety\r\nfund that enabled Jayantha to leave the country in January.)\r\nDe Silva reported that Jayantha expressed desire to leave the\r\ncountry with his family as soon as he is able to travel, and\r\nasked Embassy to assist with the funding to enable his wife\r\nand daughter to travel with him, since the \"Safety Fund\" does\r\nnot cover dependents. Internews will also work on finding a\r\nEuropean country to host them.  Regarding the other two\r\njournalists, Dharmasiri told us he desired to stay in Sri\r\nLanka, but would like assistance in paying for a safe house.\r\nPost will connect Dharmasiri with Internews concerning a\r\nsafety fund grant to pay for lodging.  Post assesses that the\r\nthreat against Ms. Anderson is less severe, and will await\r\nthe outcome of her pending application for asylum in\r\nAustralia before seeking travel funds for her.\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>11. (C) COMMENT: The GSL's victory has emboldened Sinhalese\r\nnationalists. As the most recent intemperate statements\r\nagainst journalists indicate, it appears that the Government\r\nintends to continue chauvinistic rhetoric it believes will\r\nmaintain its support among this key constituency.  Post\r\nexpects the media will continue to feel threatened and\r\ninclined toward self-censorship.  Newspapers such as the\r\nDaily Mirror that previously supported the political\r\nopposition in their editorial stance, have increasingly\r\nbecome echoes of the government-owned press.  Even the\r\noutspoken Sunday Leader has muted it anti-government stance\r\nand has muted its crusading tone, shying away from the\r\naggressive investigative journalism that was its hallmark.\r\nWe expect that an increasing number of journalists will come\r\nto the Embassy and other foreign missions for support and\r\nprotection.  For many of them, there appear to be few viable\r\nalternatives to fleeing the country, at least temporarily.\r\nThose who return may find that the threat against them has\r\nnot diminished, as Jayantha's case shows.\r\nMOORE<\/pre>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":2964,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,65,27],"tags":[1666,1139,1667,1134,1656,1659,1668,1298,1263],"class_list":["post-2959","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-press-freedom","category-wikileaks","tag-defense-secretary-gothabaya-rajapaksa","tag-democracy","tag-fmetu","tag-human-rights","tag-journalists-attacked","tag-press-freedom-in-sri-lanka","tag-sarath-fonseka-threatened-media","tag-sri-lankans-in-wikileaks","tag-us-embassy-cables-on-sri-lanka"],"yoast_head":"\nWikiLeaks: Four journalists came to Embassy - Colombo Telegraph<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wikileaks-fonseka-and-igp-labelled-journalists-as-traitors-four-journalists-came-to-embassy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"WikiLeaks: Four journalists came to Embassy - Colombo Telegraph\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"[…]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wikileaks-fonseka-and-igp-labelled-journalists-as-traitors-four-journalists-came-to-embassy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Colombo Telegraph\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-12-24T16:09:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2016-09-16T19:10:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/poddala-colombotelegraph.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"610\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"431\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Colombo Telegraph\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Colombo Telegraph\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"14 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wikileaks-fonseka-and-igp-labelled-journalists-as-traitors-four-journalists-came-to-embassy\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wikileaks-fonseka-and-igp-labelled-journalists-as-traitors-four-journalists-came-to-embassy\/\",\"name\":\"WikiLeaks: Four journalists came to Embassy - Colombo Telegraph\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wikileaks-fonseka-and-igp-labelled-journalists-as-traitors-four-journalists-came-to-embassy\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wikileaks-fonseka-and-igp-labelled-journalists-as-traitors-four-journalists-came-to-embassy\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/poddala-colombotelegraph.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2011-12-24T16:09:57+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2016-09-16T19:10:15+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/de9e3c959e41894c80608bdddd0387b7\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wikileaks-fonseka-and-igp-labelled-journalists-as-traitors-four-journalists-came-to-embassy\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wikileaks-fonseka-and-igp-labelled-journalists-as-traitors-four-journalists-came-to-embassy\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wikileaks-fonseka-and-igp-labelled-journalists-as-traitors-four-journalists-came-to-embassy\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/poddala-colombotelegraph.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/poddala-colombotelegraph.jpg\",\"width\":\"610\",\"height\":\"431\",\"caption\":\"Poddala Jayantha, the secretary of the Sri Lanka Working Journalists' Association, lies on a stretcher at a hospital in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Monday, June 1, 2009. 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