Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has called on the new Sri Lankan government to ensure a “transparent and impartial” judicial process as the trial into the disappearance of Prageeth Eknaligoda continues this week.
Nine Sri Lankan military intelligence officers have been charged in connection with Eknaligoda’s abduction, but the case has been mired in delays since 2019.
Prageeth Eknaligoda, a political columnist and cartoonist for Lanka E-news, was abducted on 24 January 2010 in Homagama, near Colombo, just two days before the re-election of President Mahinda Rajapaksa. His disappearance became emblematic of the suppression of dissent during the Rajapaksa administration. Prior to his abduction, he was investigating the use of chemical weapons by Sri Lanka’s army against Tamil in the North-East during the armed conflict.
“Those responsible for this crime must be prosecuted, regardless of their political affiliations or their links with the army,” said Célia Mercier, Head of RSF’s South Asia Desk. “RSF also calls for protection mechanisms to be put in place for witnesses and investigators.”
The case was re-opened in 2015 after Mahinda Rajapaksa left office, with investigations uncovering evidence that Eknaligoda had been detained at a Sri Lankan military camp. However, the process was severely hampered when Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who served as Defence Secretary during his brother’s presidency, came to power in 2019.
Under Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s administration, the nine soldiers charged in connection with Eknaligoda’s disappearance were released on bail, and the trial stagnated. RSF noted that the period of Gotabaya’s leadership mirrored the suppression and impunity that defined the "black decade" of Mahinda Rajapaksa’s presidency (2005–2015), during which journalists, including Tamils, faced severe repression.
The current government, led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and the National People's Power coalition, has pledged to resolve cases of political killings and abductions, including those of journalists.
Sri Lanka’s press freedom remains in a precarious state, ranking 150th out of 180 countries in RSF’s 2024 World Press Freedom Index.
