Premalal Jayasekara, a Sri Lankan politician who is currently on death row for murder, took his oath as a Member of Parliament earlier today.
The politician from the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna party (SLPP), was convicted of murdering an opposition activist after opening fire at a 2015 election rally, just days nominations for the parliamentary polls had closed in August. As such, he was allowed to contest and won his seat.
Opposition parliamentarians wore black scarves as a sign of protest as Jayasekara entered parliament earlier today, having been escorted directly from prison. Jayasekara has been a Sri Lankan parliamentarian since 2001.
Though he is the first convicted murdered to be elected as a parliamentarian, former Sri Lankan politicians and military personnel who stand accused of war crimes continue to occupy senior government positions, including the current president and prime minister.
We need your support
Sri Lanka is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a journalist. Tamil journalists are particularly at threat, with at least 41 media workers known to have been killed by the Sri Lankan state or its paramilitaries during and after the armed conflict.
Despite the risks, our team on the ground remain committed to providing detailed and accurate reporting of developments in the Tamil homeland, across the island and around the world, as well as providing expert analysis and insight from the Tamil point of view
We need your support in keeping our journalism going. Support our work today.
For more ways to donate visit https://donate.tamilguardian.com.
