Nandana Wijeratne

This note is written to shower appreciation at the new editor of the Daily News who has done the impossible ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” bring balance to Sri LankaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s media.

We all know that the Daily News is the state newspaper and space for Ministers and their virtuous ways always get prominence. But the entry of Rajpal Abeynaike has certainly turned the Daily News around ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” it is readable, it is laid out better and more importantly it is giving balance. What a relief.

Many complain of press freedom but take the private newspapers. The writers are the same and we sick and tired of the venom that they spew and who is there to question the way they write? The main English newspapers are Daily Mirror, Island, Sunday Island, Sunday Times, Sunday Leader which has always been circulating the same authors as main feature writers and these authors are either pro-LTTE, pro-separatist, anti-Rajapakse, Christian lobbyists, agents of foreign intelligence, funded by NGOs and those whose pastime is to bash Buddhists. Who are these authors ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” it is not difficult to miss them : Kumar David, Tisaranee, Dhanapala, DayanJ, Rajan Philips, Jehan P, Anne Abeysekera, Izeth H, Kishali, R M Senanayake, and special mention of the former Daily News editor who is said to have run Bible classes for Buddhists and opened a column under a muslim name and tasked a Buddhist to write against Buddhists. How ethical is this and his reward has been to be given a senior appointment in the Island paper working under the present editor who must also be subject to review on his bias.

The bias is difficult to miss because in a population of over 74% Sinhalese if there was bias by the Buddhists the newspapers should be bashing the minorities ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” instead it is the other way round and Rajpal has thankfully brought out this reality into the open domain and I can see he is giving room for writers who are purposely denied space in their newspapers.

Did no one notice how a handful of people are grouping to demonize the Sinhala Buddhists using the English medium?

But of late, I have been reading a series of debates on the Muslim-Sinhala issue and it is so refreshing from the fisticuffs happening on the road and in debates. I am able to read both sides and to even learn things from the Muslim point of view as well as understand why the Buddhists are upset. This was made possible because the Editor of the Daily News has brought a refreshing change to the way he is allowing us to come to our conclusions without forcing opinion on us. I must say a big thank you to him.

I think the present balance that Rajpal has offered through the Daily News has also given the Daily News some credibility because the other private English newspapers are really overstepping their mark.

Brave Rajpal ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” keep going

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

Nandana Wijeratne