The New York based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has written to President Chandrika Kumaratunga strongly condemning the murder of Satana Chief Editor Rohana Kumara on September 7.

In their letter to the President faxed on Thursday, CPJ said that the motive for the killing was not known. However, journalists in Sri Lanka fear that Kumara had been murdered for his work, it said.

"CJP’s sources characterize Satana ("Battle’’) as a controversial tabloid paper with a reputation for attacking the government and featuring personal and political scandal. Though Satana currently receives financial backing from the opposition United National Party (UNP), it had also taken money from the People’s Alliance (PA) coalition led by Your Excellency, in the days when the PA was in the opposition, according to the Colombo-based Free Media Movement (FMM)’’ the letter said.

"The FMM also reports that Satana recently ran a series of stories concerning allegations of high-level corruption and bribery involving, among others, Your Excellency’s media advisor, Sanath Gunatillake.’’

The letter said that as a non partisan organisation of journalists dedicated to the defence of colleagues worldwide, CPJ was deeply disturbed by Kumara’s murder. It congratulated the President for acting promptly to order a full investigation into the killing and urged her to publish the results of this investigation and bring the killers to justice.

The CPJ letter was signed by Ann K. Cooper, Executive Director of the organisation and copied to several journalists’ and press freedom advocate orgnisations both here and abroad.

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