Ranjith Soysa

Sally S who directs many programs on Sri Lankan issues always presents a very bleak picture of the Island painting the Government and all anti -LTTE forces in dark black while giving the impression the LTTE and the separatist groups champion the human rights and democratic ideals. Sally will be the happiest journalist in the world if, Sri Lanka decides to divide the country and handover one part to the separatists as per her understanding of Sri Lanka. Even though her intellectual capacity as a presenter of a prestigious program in the developed world is being questioned by many listeners, she continues to “entertain” ABC listeners by failing to grasp the realities of the Sri Lankan nation.

In the program under discussion her commentators from Sri Lanka were Ms Jehan Perera, Pakkiyasothi Saravanmuttu, Mano Ganeshan and Tiran Alles! Sally’s objectives and her prostitution of the task at hand is made obvious by her choice. Even a kindergarten student of politics in Sri Lanka knows that first three of the commentators were supporting the separatists and are very soft on the LTTE and the last commentator has a political grievance against the present administration. So they said Tamils are not safe in the North as their sole intention is to denigrate Sri Lankan Nation State using the international media. No sensible person would have expected a fair comment from Sally’s friends. But, Sally chooses to carry on regardless.

In her program she says that the Government representatives were not available. But, she does not know or she does not want to know that in Sri Lanka there are educated, articulate members of the civil society who are rooted in Sri Lankan reality who can present a fair comment about the 2 million Tamils in Sri Lanka including the over 500,000 Tamils breathing and living in the North. Sally’s preferred commentators are fed by the foreign funding organizations closely connected to countries like Norway which nearly bifurcated Sri Lanka. Mano Ganeshan ,an ally of the LTTE roamed round the Western capitals promoting Prabahakaran. He is a political reject at the recently concluded elections! Tiran Alles, Sally’s forth choice is more worried about himself let alone the Northern Tamils!

Either Sally is blind and cannot see the truth or she is under the impression that all ABC listeners are as dumb as she is. In ether way she has failed to do justice by ABC or professional journalism.

ABC-Australia, over to you.

Ranjith Soysa

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