If Cicero had been living today, he would, without doubt have berated the journalistic morals of the UK newspaper "The Times",using the above maxim to show to what low depths even an erstwhile prestigious broadsheet like the Times has sunk by their blatant distortion of news of what goes on in the North of Sri Lanka.

Milliband and his juvenile antics which bordered on hysteria in his frenetic efforts to cobble up a Western coalition of cohorts to forestall the crushing of the LTTE by the Sri Lankan Armed Forces, was visibly devastated when his favourite band of terrorists was crushed and the leader killed. Furious at the unexpected turn of events, he once again led his gang of crusaders in a damning vilification campaign alleging gross human rights violations by Sri Lanka, even threatening to indict the President and the Service Chiefs for massacring innocent civilians. While playing down the wanton killing of thousands of civilian hostages who attempted to flee the n.f.z. by the LTTE,these conspirators had the effrontery to blandly state that the proposed investigation would enquire into the killings committed by both parties.On one side was the GOSL fighting to crush a murderous terrorist organisation that had been the bane of this country for three decades and on the other side was the terrorist outfit that no longer existed ,with all the leaders dead and buried. The party in the dock would have been only the GOSL! The other party would have been tried "in absentia" with punishment also being meted out in absentia. A unique way indeed, of conducting an investigation,one would think!

This clownish character Milliband has been humiliated enough by the Guardian and some other newspapers in Britain on his pantomimic role in Sri Lanka that would certainly have led any self- respecting politicians to resign forthwith. But these self righteous humbugs are thick enough to withstand even the wrath of their own electors for diddling tax payers’money by buying cots for their children, running huge expense accounts and even maintaining ‘very private’ secretaries! So how could one possibly expect them to show any moral qualms in carrying out their vicious campaign to blacken the image of a defiant David who stands up to the shameful bullying of an ungainly behemoth!

The London Times, obviously acting in concert with Milliband,carried a headline the other day boldly declaring that a "cited UN source" had given the estimate of people killed during the final stage as 20000. There was also the allegation that evidence was available from aerial photographs to establish the existence of mass graves within the no fire zone. Sir John Holmes,the UN humanitarian chief who is an experienced diplomat who had served in Paris and other important capitals, had countered these irresponsible allegations with his characteristic candour by stating that the figure of 20000 killed "has no status as far as we are concerned" as the UN estimate of 7000 in April was itself questionable, as it could not be verified. As for "mass graves", Sir John’s observation was that the appearance of makeshift cemeteries was no surprise as a lot of people had been killed there.

Riled by the unsupportive remarks made by Sir John Holmes which undermined the figures of the numbers killed as given in the Times ,the Editor of that newspaper had the brash impudence to point an accusing finger at the UN and state "the UN has no right to collude in suppressing the appalling evidence"! Oh! The Times! Oh! The morals!

"Appalling" has been the favourite descriptive word parroted so effusively by the conspiratorial triad-BBC ,Aljazeera and CNN, in their news coverage of Sri Lanka over the past two to three months.The word, as mouthed by them, has lost all meaning and sounds as hollow as some of their news reports!

If these media organizations do not get their act together and ensure that their news reportage is organized and managed responsibly,their viewers/readership will treat them with the wounding contempt they richly deserve.