July 04, 2008	Friday	Jamadi-us-Sani 29, 1429

COLOMBO, July 3: The United States said on Thursday it had “strong concerns” about Sri Lanka’s deteriorating human rights record and escalating attacks on the local media.

Deputy assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian affairs Evan Feigenbaum expressed US concerns to Sri Lankan authorities during his four-day visit which ends on Thursday.

“We continue to have strong concerns about human rights and pressures on the media,” Feigenbaum said.

He noted, however, the formation of a ministerial committee to address concerns raised by journalists over their safety and independence.

A journalist and a senior officer of the British High Commission (embassy) were beaten up and their car smashed in the capital on Monday, just six days after the cabinet panel was set up to protect media personnel.

Freelance defence analyst Namal Perera escaped the apparent abduction attempt, but is still in hospital after being assaulted with iron bars and sticks. High Commission political officer Mahendra Ratnaweera suffered head injuries, but is out of hospital.In a separate reaction, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said the attack was “yet another example of the violence and intimidation aimed at journalists in Sri Lanka.” ”The government is responsible for the culture of impunity that surrounds violence against journalists,” it said. “It is time to reverse that ugly reality.” Newspaper publishers have offered a reward of five million rupees (46,000 dollars) for information leading to arrest of those responsible for the attack.

Since August 2005, 12 media workers have been killed in Sri Lanka. Eleven of them died in government-controlled areas, and no one has been brought to justice in connection with the killings.

Sri Lanka’s bitter ethnic war, which has left tens of thousands of people dead, has escalated sharply since January, when the government pulled out of a Norwegian-brokered truce with the Tamil Tigers.—AFP