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Don't remain silent in midst of political killings: FMM
The Free Media Movement in a statement expressed its shock and sorrow at the abduction and the brutal murder of senior journalist Dharmaretnam Sivaram on the night of April 28, 2005.
The FMM said:
"We see this murder as a violation of broad democratic rights and of media freedom.

D. Sivaram was a well-known and leading Sri Lankan journalist, who had more than two decades of experience working in this field. He specialised in reporting on security issues and on the Tamil national struggle. Sivaram was committed to the cause of the Tamil national struggle and through the Tamilnet – the website of which he was a part of the editorial team – he played a key role in keeping the world abreast of developments in the north and east of Sri Lanka.

"The Free Media Movement expresses appreciation for his role as a journalist not on the basis of the views that he held but on the basis of the dynamism and diversity that he brought to the Sri Lankan media.

The despicable manner of his abduction and murder point to the fact that his murderers and the political environment in which they operate are based on anti-democratic principles which allow a struggle to be carried on, not in the realm of ideas but in the realm of murder and mayhem. The assassination of not only media persons but of ordinary civilians – who hold opinions that differ from your own – has become a common practice in the Sri Lankan political arena during the past twenty years and it grows like a cancer that overshadows our present.

"The murder of Sivaram is very clearly a politically motivated murder. It is clear that his murderers thought to silence him through this assassination. This is why the Free Media Movement calls this a murder of media freedom. A free media needs not the dominance of one voice but the prevalence of many different voices. A democratic framework calls for debate and dialogue among those with diverse opinions. Tolerance of a variety of views is essential in a democratic media culture.

"On this sorrowful occasion, the Free Media Movement calls on all media institutions, democratic organizations and individuals to take a stand in condemning the politics of assassination and elimination, no matter which side acts in this manner, and why. The message we wish to share with the people of Sri Lanka is that it is our obligation to raise our voices in protest against the killing of Sivaram and others who have been victims of politically motivated murders".

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