‘Final Warning’ issued to Jaffna Tamil daily Uthayan staffers

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 June 2009, 06:30 GMT]
A group calling itself ‘Tamil Front Protecting the Country’ allegedly linked to a paramilitary group operating with Colombo issued Saturday a notice titled ‘Final Warning’ to Uthayan Tamil daily office in Jaffna warning that Uthayan staffers will be killed if they do not officially relinquish their posts with effect from 30 June 2009, sources in Jaffna said. Thursday, all the local newspapers of Jaffna that defied publishing an anonymous and defiling notice against Liberation Tigers came under attack by an armed group in which thousands of copies of the local newspapers, Valampuri, Uthayan and Thinakkural (Jaffna edition) were burnt.

Consequently, the three Tamil dailies had published the said notice against Liberation Tigers with a note saying that they are publishing the notice in order to safeguard the lives of their staffers.

The ‘Final Warning’ addressed to the employees, agents and reporters of Uthayan was issued Saturday in person by the ‘Tamil Front Protecting the Country’ to all Tamil dailies in Jaffna.

The gist of the warning notice in Tamil is as follows:

‘It is known that Uthayan, since its inception and up to now, has been publishing news disarraying the freedom of the Tamils. Uthayan is causing confusion among them by publishing reports aimed at making them align with the ‘terrorists’ besides inciting racial hatred in order to destroy the Tamils and the basis for a permanent freedom now achieved. Besides, Uthayan daily publishes fabricated stories and functions as a propaganda newspaper for the ‘terrorists’.

You have ignored many of our earlier warnings.

We have been forced to take the decision of not allowing dailies in Jaffna peninsula which continue to publish news misleading the people.

Therefore we demand the reporters, employees, agents and guards of Uthayan to officially resign from 30 June.

Persons not complying with will be subjected to death penalty.’

‘Tamil Front Protecting the Country’