Sri Lanka Press Institute holds 18th AGM

Tuesday, 23 November 2021 00:16 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Sri Lanka Press Institute (SLPI) held its 18th Annual General Meeting last Wednesday (10) virtually on the Zoom web conferencing platform. The meeting was attended by representatives of its constituent partners, the Newspaper Society of Sri Lanka (NSSL), The Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka (TEGOSL), the Free Media Movement (FMM), and the Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association (SLWJA).

During the year, SLPI has been able to engage with journalists on several platforms with operational health safety in pandemic reportage and professional security-related capacity building programs ensuring their commitment to freedom of expression and free media. The institute launched a fact-checking unit as a service along with a research team to complement the ongoing work. Understanding the current trends and transition of the print industry to new digital media, an online platform www.journo.lk was introduced to function as a hub for professional and ethical journalism. The SLPI continues their program on Right to Information (RTI) where both the general public and the media industry is encouraged in influencing and promoting transparency and accountability.

Several program and project initiatives complementing the SLPI’s mandate to nurture an informed public and professionalise journalism have been conducted in collaboration with fraternal organisations locally and foreign agencies such as UNESCO, the Norwegian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GiZ), International Organisation for Migration (IOM), the South Asia Collective (SAC), and the diplomatic missions of USA and Canada.

The AGM was presided over by Acting Chairman Sinha Ratnatunga and the Directors re-elected were Kumar Nadesan (Chairman) of the Newspaper Society, Sinha Ratnatunga (Deputy Chairman), Manik de Silva and Mohanlal Piyadasa of The Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka, Seetha Ranjanee, Udaya Kalupathirana and Thaha Muzammil of the Free Media Movement, and Lasantha Ruhunage and Duminda Sampath of the Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association.

Ernest and Young Sri Lanka Ltd. were re-appointed as auditors of the company and F.J. & G de Saram’s Corporate Services Ltd. (CSL) were re-appointed as the company secretaries.

The affiliated organisations of the SLPI are the South Asia Free Media Association (SAFMA), Tamil Media Alliance (TMA), Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum (SLMMF), and Federation of Media Employees’ Trade Union (FMESTU)