The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is shocked by the brutal assault and apparent attempted abduction in Colombo of Namal Perera, a Sinhala-language journalist and deputy head of the advocacy section of the Sri Lanka Press Institute (SLPI).

Perera and a friend, Mahendra Ratnaweera, who works with the British High Commission in Sri Lanka, were stopped as they were driving through a neighbourhood of Colombo early in the evening of June 30, according to the Free Media Movement (FMM), an IFJ affiliate.

Perera reportedly told the local press that he and Ratnaweera closed the car windows and locked all doors when they were stopped. But the assailants smashed the car's windows and attacked both men with batons and clubs. Perera and his friend suffered serious injuries and are being treated at a hospital in Colombo.

The miscreants reportedly targeted Perera, and shouted his name. They were only thwarted because of the resistance offered by both men, and fled the scene when a crowd gathered.

The incident follows the Government's appointment of a Cabinet sub-committee, led by senior minister Sarath Amunugama, to investigate and report on the media community's grievances about increasing targeted violence and intimidation faced by journalists in Sri Lanka.

The attack on Perera, a respected journalist and media trainer who recently took on the additional responsibilities of advocacy work at SLPI, also coincides with a slander campaign by government-controlled media against the institute.

SLPI has strongly refuted allegations published on June 26 in a government-owned Sinhala newspaper, Dinamina, that the institute had sent eight sympathisers or active members of the

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), with whom the Government is at war, for training in Scandinavia in 2007.

On June 27, SLPI director Ranga Kalansooriya called for an apology from the newspaper. SLPI is considering legal action.

"The IFJ is greatly disturbed by the savage attack and attempted abduction of Perera, and is appalled that an independent institution contributing significantly to the growth of professionalism and quality in Sri Lanka's media should be targeted in this manner," said IFJ Asia-Pacific.

"The Amunugama committee must prove it is serious about ending violence against journalists and inquire immediately and transparently into this latest example."

The IFJ also takes note of the strong condemnation of the attack by Media Minister Anura Yapa, and calls for immediate action to end the climate of impunity for attacks on journalists.

For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +612 9333 0919

The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 122 countries