BY Dinitha Rathnayake
The media should be more responsible when they cover stories about incidents of sexual abuse, National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) Chairman Prof. Muditha Vidanapathirana said.
Speaking at a recent press conference, he said that certain media organisations had revealed the identity of alleged victims during the reportage of such incidents, and noted that this was unacceptable.
“We know that the media plays a major role when it comes to reporting such incidents. I believe that the media should report such incidents even before the complaint is lodged with the Police. But it is their responsibility to protect the victim’s identity. It should not be revealed.”
Prof. Vidanapathirana further explained that certain electronic media stations had attempted to reveal footage of the victim in their reporting, especially concerning the recent incident in Nawalapitiya where a 13-year-old girl was sexually exploited by 10 people including the girl’s father. “Some media outlets tried to show her face when she was attending for inspection. This is truly unethical,” he noted.
During a recent press conference, Police Media Spokesman Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police (SDIG) Ajith Rohana said, however, that the support of the media and the community is important to overcome sexual abuse.
“Sri Lanka is not the first country where these types of incidents occur. When we compare Sri Lanka to other Asian countries, the situation is far better in our country. We especially see a lot of cases being reported from neighbouring India. This does not mean that we justify our cases.”
He also noted that in certain instances, parents were among those directly involved in exploiting the child. “The best example of this is the case of the 15-year-old girl who was sexually exploited in Mount Lavinia. Her parents were directly involved in her sale and getting her to face the consequences of such.”
According to SDIG Rohana, the authorities will put in place a national-level plan to prevent such incidents from recurring in the near future.
NCPA raises concerns on media ethics
22 Jul 2021
NCPA raises concerns on media ethics
22 Jul 2021
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