Award for jailed S Lankan editor

(Sept.02,2009): A Sri Lankan Tamil journalist sentenced to 20 years in prison on Monday, has now been given an award for courageous and ethical journalism. JS Tissainayagam has been named the first recipient of the Peter Mackler Award by the Paris-based group “Reporters Without Borders.” Tissainayagam was arrested in 2008 and charged with inciting violence in articles in his magazine. He was also accused of receiving funds from Tamil Tiger rebels. He has denied supporting violence.
The world's largest organisation of journalists, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), has condemned the judgement, which also sentences him to hard labour while in prison, and described it as "disproportionate, brutal and inhumane". The case of Tissainayagam has received widespread attention in Sri Lanka, and international rights groups have been campaigning for his release. They say Sri Lanka is using anti-terror laws to silence peaceful critics.