Facebook icon
Twitter icon
e-mail icon

Remembering Nadesan 10 years on

Today is the tenth anniversary of the assassination of veteran Tamil journalist Aiyathurai Nadesan by a Sri Lankan government-backed death squad.

Nadesan was shot dead in Batticaloa on 31 May 2004 as he was on his way to work.

He reported under the nom-de-plume G. Nadesan for the leading Tamil-language newspaper, Virakesari, and the London-based Tamil radio station, IBC.

Nadesan was one of several journalists, including Mylvaganam Nimalrajan, Dharmeratnam (Taraki) Sivaram and Lasantha Wickrematunga killed as part of silencing criticism of Sri Lanka’s ruthless military campaign.

See coverage of Nadesan’s death and funeral and a report into his death by the Committee to Protect Journalists’ here.

See below what Sivaram, himself abducted and murdered less than a year later by government-backed paramilitaries, observed after Nadesan's killing.

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.