He said that he was pushed into a van by a gang of men, who beat him and shaved his beard and hair before dumping him by the roadside. He suffered head and leg injuries. The activist is a known critic of the Sri Lankan government vis-a-vis attacks on the media which are among the highest in the world according to media watchdogs.
Jayantha returned to Sri Lanka only a few weeks ago after repeated threats and intimidation, including an attempt by an armed gang to abduct him from his home, forced him to flee.
Critics in Sri Lanka´s local media have come under extreme pressure in the past few years. Several independent journalists have been killed.
At least 20 Sri Lankan journalists have fled after receiving death threats and 14 have been killed since the beginning of the military campaign to crush the Tamil Tiger rebels in 2006. Others have been arbitrarily arrested and tortured or disappeared while in custody.
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