British TV crew blocked from reaching Sri Lanka's former war zone

BY SHIHAR ANEEZ AND RANGA SIRILAL-COLOMBO Wed Nov 13, 2013 A demonstrator holds up a placard against British journalist and director Callum Macrae before his arrival to Bandaranayake International airport for the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting CH!GM" in #atunayake $ovember %%& '(%)*

+euters" , British television journalists who have reported on war crimes allegations in -ri .anka were stopped from reaching the north of the country on /ednesday by protesters who blocked their train& the 01 station and local police said* 0he Channel 2 news team was in -ri .anka to cover a Commonwealth summit that will start on 3riday and which has already been marred by concerns about human rights abuses* 0he leaders of Canada and India are staying away*

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MT4 trading: Ultra-fast e e!"ti#n$ L#sses !an e !eed %#"r de&#sits$ 'ind #"t (#re Around %(( protesters blocked the train in which the news crew was travelling& trying to get to the north of the island& the scene of the government4s war against 0amil 0iger rebels that ended in '((5* 63ive hours north of Colombo& in the city of Anuradhapura& a large mob of pro, government demonstrators met then train and then blocked the tracks& preventing the train , which had hundreds of passengers on board , from continuing&6 Channel 2 said on its website* Among the journalists was Callum Macrae whose documentary& 6$o 3ire 7one8 0he #illing 3ields of -ri .anka6& released last week& showed video of a 0amil 0iger television presenter being captured and killed in what the filmmaker said was a one of a 6pattern of war crimes6 committed in the final days of the war* 0he military called the film an attempt to discredit -ri .anka before the Commonwealth summit that brings together heads of state and government from around the world* 9+!G+:-0he police said the Channel 2 team decided to return to the capital after their journey was blocked* 60hey protested against these journalists travelling to the north *** saying that these journalists were tarnishing the image of -ri .anka&6 said police spokesman Ajith +ohana* Channel 2 3oreign Affairs Correspondent ;onathan Miller 0weeted8 6:scorted by police off train through yelling mob* /e are now driving south under police escort*6 0he journalists also said they had faced protests on arrival at the airport& an area where demonstrations are never normally allowed& and outside their hotel in central Colombo where protests have been banned during the Commonwealth summit* 6It *** appears that the ban only applies to those who would demonstrate against the government&6 Macrae said* 6Government supporters seem able to organise

demonstrations at will and the police show no desire to stop them*6 .ocal media reported that 9resident Mahinda +ajapaksa had invited the journalists to visit any part of the country during their stay to see the progress made since the war* 0ens of thousands of civilians were killed in '((5 in the final months the war& a <*$* panel has said& as government troops advanced on the northern tip of the island controlled by 0amil rebels fighting for an independent homeland* 0he panel said there were 6credible allegations6 that -ri .ankan troops and the 0amil 0igers both carried out atrocities but said the government was responsible for most of the deaths* Canadian 9rime Minister -tephen Harper has declined to attend the summit because of concerns over abuses* India4s Manmohan -ingh also pulled out* 0he <*$* Human +ights Commission has passed two resolutions urging -ri .anka to investigate the war crimes allegations& something +ajapaksa4s government has rejected* :diting by +obin 9omeroy"