Channel 4 issue:

Matter raised with UK Press Complaints Commission

Manjula FERNANDO

The Sri Lankan High Commission in London has lodged a complaint with the Press Complaints Commission, UK against Channel 4 TV.

The complaint was lodged for not complying with its request to air an apology for the telecast of an unverified video footage, after the Government established in four separate investigations that the said footage was in fact a fake. Following the findings of the investigations on the video, sourced to 'Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka', an unknown organization based in Berlin, the Government wrote to Channel 4 requesting them to retract the footage.

"We have not received anything substantial," Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe said asked if there was any response from the News channel to this plea. He said the High Commission made a complaint with the Press Complaints Commission and Attorney General Mohan Peiris left for London from Geneva yesterday, after attending the UN Security Council Sessions, to meet with a local law firm.

The Attorney General will have legal consultations as to the future course of action against Channel 4.

The footage which claimed Sri Lankan soldiers shooting unarmed LTTE cadres was first telecast by Channel 4 and later picked up by many international media services provoking disturbing comments from several international figures including UN Special Rapporteur on summary killings Prof. Philip Alston who called for an international investigation. The reports of the forensic findings were submitted to UN Secretary General Ban ki Moon, Commissioner for Human Rights Navanethem Pillay and others who made concerned remarks.