Sri Lanka's media minister, Gayantha Karunatilleka invited exiled journalists to return to the island, promising they could work independently without fear of persecution.
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Praying at the sacred Buddhist site of the Sacred Tooth Relic and seeking the blessing of Buddhist clergy, Mr Karunatilleke said: "We have created a conducive environment for all media personnel to work independently without fear of persecution."
"No more killings or abductions and breaking limbs.Media people left the country for fear of life. Committees would be appointed to probe into corruption and malpractices in government departments. The State Media divorced completely from the people in the past," he was quoted by the Sunday Observer as saying.
The new president has launched an inquiry into the killing of the Sunday Leader editor, Lasantha Wickrematunge, who was a vocal critic of the previous president, Mahinda Rajapaksa.
The killings and disappearances of numerous Tamil journalists have not been investigated.
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