Foreign media hypocrisy

Most news items related to the conflict in Sri Lanka by foreign media now include a permanent clause which says that Tamils have been systematically discriminated by the Sinhala people since Independence.

While some of the news reports use the term ‘allegedly’ discriminated, most news agencies have now dropped the term ‘allegedly’ in their news report. One wonders whether they have any concrete evidence or have done enough research to come in to such conclusions. It is often believed that when a lie is uttered repeatedly it comes to a stage that people really tend to believe it as true.

While not denying the fact that there would surely have been a few isolated cases of discrimination of Tamils by the Sinhala people, to say that there has been systematic discrimination is nothing but false. It was in reality the Sinhala people who were discriminated under colonial rule and after Independence they started to get their due and just place in society and as a result the favoured position enjoyed by the some Tamil people began to erode.

The Western media who are not informed of the complex issues related to the conflict have got blinded by false propaganda and would try to twist their stories to grab the headlines.

They would go to any length to exaggerate the issues of third world and sensationalise them to achieve their task.

Looking at news reports in the past few days on the human exodus to the liberated areas, it is clear how prejudiced their reporting is. Without describing the immense sacrifices by the Security Forces to minimize casualties and the efforts under difficult conditions to provide them with basic needs and shelter they would harp on minor logistical set backs in handling such a large number of displaced people.

It is irrational to evaluate the ground conditions comparatively with a developed country when the country has been ravaged by terrorism for 30 years and may be lacking some facilities.

Even a developed country would have had immense problems handling such a large number of displaced people. It is indeed a prudent decision by the Government to keep the foreign media out of the conflict zone, if they were allowed they would have gone to town with their biased reporting hampering the whole operation.

- K.G.E.