SRI LANKA: Foreign newsmen face curbs in Lanka says agency

Media watchdog slams Sri Lankan government for imposing restrictions on foreign journalists covering tsunami relief efforts

Dawn
Saturday, March 19, 2005

Colombo -- Sri Lanka's media watchdog has criticized the government for imposing 'unacceptable restrictions' on foreign journalists covering tsunami relief efforts.

In a statement, the Free Media Movement (FMM) said a Canadian TV journalist had been asked by the Sri Lankan embassy in Ottawa to sign a letter of agreement accepting the restrictions as a condition for issuing him a visa.

The watchdog said these sort of restrictions 'did not exist even during most of the period of armed conflict'

The FMM was responding to a letter from Canadian journalist Steve Schmit stating that the High Commission of Sri Lanka had asked him to provide 'a letter of agreement' as a visa condition.

Foreign ministry authorities claim that the Canadian journalist had been merely asked to comply with certain 'mandatory regulations'.

Date Posted: 3/19/2005