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Tamil journalist killed in No Fire Zone commemorated

Tamil journalist Puniyamoorthy Sathiyamoorthy, who was killed by Sri Lankan army shelling in the ‘No Fire Zone’ 11 years ago, was commemorated in Batticaloa this week.

Sathiyamoorthy was massacred alongside tens of thousands of other Tamils during the military offensive more than a decade ago, as he sheltered inside a government declared ‘No Fire Zone’. The area was repeatedly subjected to Sri Lankan military shelling, despite the state’s pledges.

The Committee to Protect Journalists wrote on his death, stating,

“Colleagues outside of the conflict area, not all of them Tamils, said Sathiyamoorthy’s reports and commentaries were measured, and that he strove to maintain journalistic standards and an accurate representation of the wartime situations in which he found himself. His work had global impact, reaching large numbers of Tamils living overseas.”

“Born in 1972, he eventually moved to Jaffna but traveled throughout the areas controlled by the LTTE during the conflict. He was married and was the father of a 6-year-old girl.”

“Several Tamil media reports said Sathiyamoorthy did not die immediately. They cited relatives who said a lack of proper medical attention contributed to his death.”

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