Committee to Protect Journalists, described by some as ‘journalism’s Red Cross’, welcomed the arrest of several individuals over the disappearance of journalist Prageeth Eknalidoda.

 

"We are encouraged by progress in the case of Prageeth Eknelygoda. If the government of President Maithripala Sirisena resolves the journalist's disappearance, the Eknelygoda family will finally be able to find some closure in their long search for justice," said Bob Dietz, CPJ's Asia program coordinator.

 

Eknaligoda, a journalist for the news website Lanka eNews, went missing days before the 2010 presidential elections. On August 24, four Army personnel were arrested over the incident.

 

CPJ has repeatedly called on Sri Lankan authorities to investigate Eknaligoda's disappearance and hold the perpetrators to account. Sri Lanka was ranked fourth on CPJ's 2014 Impunity Index, which spotlights countries where journalists are slain and their killers go free.