K. S. Raja

Infobox journalist
name = K. S. Raja
கே. எஸ். ராஜா


birth_date=
birth_place=Jaffna, flag|Sri Lanka
death_date=1989Fact|date=July 2007
death_place=Colombo, flag|Sri Lanka
occupation = Journalist
ethnic = Sri Lankan Tamil
credits = Popular Radio Journalist

K. S. Raja (also spelled K. S. Rajah,

Biography

He was born in a town called Karainagar (see [http://www.fallingrain.com/world/CE/31/Karainagar.html here] ) in the Jaffna peninsula to middle class minority Sri Lankan Tamil parents and grew up in Kotatadi, Jaffna.

Career in Radio Ceylon

He was a pioneering announcer in the Tamil language known for his melodious voice and innovative programs. His programs were popular in the state of Tamil Nadu in India.

His death

After the 1983 Black July anti-minority pogrom he briefly moved to India and was involved with the Tamil militant group Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front(EPRLF).Fact|date=October 2007 Subsequent to the Indo-Sri Lanka peace accord in 1987, he returned to his former job in Radio Ceylon now known as Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation. With the resumption of hostilities between the government of Sri Lanka and the main rebel group Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam(LTTE) he was abducted by unknown persons and found murdered in a Colombo beach. cite web|url=http://www.tamilcanadian.com/page.php?cat=52&id=1403|title= EPDP accused of his murder]

Controversy

According a former member of a political party and a paramilitary group known as the Eelam People's Democratic Party(EPDP) which in itself was a pro government splinter group from the EPRLF that K. S. Raja was once part of, K. S. Raja was killed by orders of Douglas Devananda the leader of EPDP.

When Douglas Devanada was asked about his involvement in the murder of K. S. Raja, he did not directly deny responsibility or answer the question instead pointed to other journalists allegedly killed by LTTE. [cite web|url=http://www.lacnet.org/the_academic/chat/QA_Deva.shtml|title=Ask Douglas Devananda questions series] . In in its official website EPDP has accused the rebel LTTE as being behind the killing. [cite web|url=http://www.epdpnews.com/Photos/Killed%20by%20LTTE%20Englishl..html|title=EPDP news]

ee also

*Notable assassinations of the Sri Lankan Civil War

References

External links

* [http://ksrajah.blogdrive.com/ K.S. Rajah Blog in his memory]
* [http://www.freemedia.at/PDF_Reports/SriLanka_mission_report.pdf Sri Lanka mission report]
* [http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=10956 Nine recommendations for improving media freedom in Sri Lanka – RSF]
* [http://www.humanrights-geneva.info/article.php3?id_article=1618 Media in Sri Lanka]
* [http://www.ifj-asia.org/page/sri_lanka1.html Free Speech in Sri Lanka]