The Press Complaints Commission of Sri Lanka has sent the following right-of-reply statement from the Muslim Peace Secretariat to the Sunday Times:
This has reference to the news item captioned “Crisis at Muslim Peace Secretariat” which appeared in the ‘Sunday Times’ of March 22, 2009.
The information contained in this news item is baseless and published with the intention of tarnishing the reputation of both Peace Secretariat for Muslims (PSM) and its directors. According to this news item, the funding agencies have suspended their contributions to PSM, which is absolutely false since Norway and USAID continue to fund the projects of PSM.
We also wish to place on record that there is no allegation of financial misappropriation or mismanagement of funds. Reputed auditors audit our accounts annually and the PSM complies with the Sri Lankan accounting standards. The serious allegation levelled against the directors of the PSM with ‘misappropriation of large sums’ is palpably false.
This news item also reveals that Hon. Hasen Ali, MP and Director of PSM informed the ‘Sunday Times’ that auditors are probing an allegation of misappropriation of funds being provided by donors to PSM. Hon. Hasen Ali, MP has informed us that he has been misquoted and he would take the matter up with the particular journalist of the ‘Sunday Times’ who had spoken to him.
We are also reluctantly compelled to state that Mr. M.I.M. Mohideen, who served as Secretary General, did not leave the PSM as stated in the said news item but as his contract of employment was not renewed by PSM at its expiration, in October 2007.
We also wish to place on record that an esteemed newspaper such as the Sunday Times had thought it fit to carry out a news items with regard to a public institution without checking the facts with the institution and without granting an opportunity to register our protest thereto.
The Sunday Times
response:
The Norwegian embassy in Colombo has confirmed to the Sunday Times that following complaints received about the PSM, action was taken to suspend funding for some of the new projects proposed by the PSM. Only funds which had already been approved were released.
The embassy confirms they had called for an audit report for the funds which had been spent by the PSM following these allegations.
Eventually, Norway stopped all funding for the PSM.
Though Mr. N. Sikkander, Director General of the PSM, says there were no allegations of financial misappropriation or mismanagement of funds, the Norwegian embassy confirms there were allegations prompting them to call for an audit report.
Mr. Sikkander says that Mr. Hasen Ali who was contacted by the Sunday Times and quoted in the news item, has been misquoted and that Mr. Hassen Ali would take the matter up with the particular journalist. This has not happened seven months later after the news item appeared.
The former Secretary General Mr. M.I.M. Mohideen submitted a detailed report on preventing malpractices in the organization.
He had raised issues concerning payments made to directors and made a series of proposals to avoid abuse of funds.
Eventually Mr. Mohideen had to leave the organization as his contract was not extended though he was willing to be considered for another term.
Finally, Mr. Sikkander says the Sunday Times made no attempt to check with the PSM about the facts.
The fact is that the Sunday Times spoke to Mr. Hassen Ali who is a Director of the PSM and quoted him accordingly.
Mr. Sikkander would recall that the Sunday Times made several calls to him and each time he told us that he was at a meeting and could not take questions.
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