The Committee to Protect Journalists called for press freedom in Sri Lanka and urged politicians stop to halt the intimidation of journalists by publicly levelling accusations against them.
The statement from the press freedom organisation comes after the editor of the New York Times, condemned the intimidation of journalists by Sri Lankan lawmakers following a report last month into Chinese control over of the Hambantota port.
“Politicians have every right to dispute the findings of a news report, but publicly singling out Dharisha Bastians and Arthur Wamanan is a worrisome development in a country noted for attacks on journalists and unsolved journalist murders," said Steven Butler, CPJ's Asia program coordinator.
"We call on all political parties in Sri Lanka to publicly affirm support for press freedom and journalists' safety."
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