In a statement issued today, the FMM said the deputy editor of Ceylon Today had visited Karapitiya Teaching Hospital to meet Iranian sailors currently receiving treatment there.
According to the journalist, while she was gathering information from the sailors with the assistance of a translator from the Embassy of Iran in Sri Lanka, a group claiming to be police officers intervened and obstructed her work. She alleged that the group forcibly snatched her notebooks while she was performing her duties.
Ramaiya Mohan further stated that during the incident a police officer and a security official verbally abused her using obscene language.
She said she later informed the Sri Lanka Police chief by telephone and subsequently attempted to lodge a complaint with the Galle Police regarding the incident. However, when the Free Media Movement inquired about the complaint, the police reportedly said no such complaint had been received. The journalist has also claimed that she was not provided with a complaint reference number.
Condemning the incident, the FMM said the actions amounted to unnecessary police interference that obstructs the media’s right to perform professional duties freely, and called on the Inspector General of Police to immediately investigate the matter and take appropriate action.
