The 25th edition of the Journalism Awards for Excellence, the prestigious annual event that celebrates the best in print media in the country, will be held today (07), at the Empire Ballroom, Mount Lavinia Hotel.

This year marks a milestone – a quarter-century of honouring the brilliance, dedication, and impact of journalists. While awards will be given in 18 categories, five senior journalists will receive the coveted Lifetime Achievement Award. The programme is organised by The Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka in partnership with the Sri Lanka Press Institute and its affiliated unions; the Newspaper Society of Sri Lanka, the Free Media Movement and the Sri Lanka Working Journalists’ Association. This year’s lifetime achievement recipients are Ammaiappapillai Yogamoorthy, N.M. Ameen, Chandrika Wijesundera, Bennet Rupasinghe and Zanita Careem.

Ammaiappapillai Yogamoorthy started his media career as a political cartoonist while also writing satirical articles and poems for the famous Tamil satirical magazine “Sirithiram.”

Yogamoorthy took up full time journalism in 1996. Initially, he contributed articles translated from English and Sinhala for the Virakesari newspaper. He then joined the Thinakkural newspaper as a cartoonist and translator since its start in 1997 April and is working there up to date.

Yogamoorthy has produced about 5,000 political cartoons and about 5,000 translated features published in the Thinakkural and Virakesari newspapers and has won several awards for his contribution to journalism.

Chandrika Wijesundara was educated at Marapana Maha Vidyalaya and Ratnapura Seevali Maha Vidyalaya. Her interest in journalism began during her school days an, in 1978, she joined the Dawasa newspaper of the Independent Newspapers group as an apprentice. From there she worked for Riviresa and Weekend Newspapers, first as a feature writer and later as features editor for about 12 years. She also started the ‘Daru Resa’ children’s supplement.

She joined the Lankadeepa newspaper in 1992 and became a Deputy Editor. From then until 2021, she held the position of features editor of the Daily Lankadeepa newspaper for about 30 years, making a wide contribution to make the newspaper gain popularity among the readership.

Ms.Wijesundara, is not only a veteran journalist but also a veteran writer and translator who has contributed to the development of Sinhala literature by writing children’s books as well as books for young adults. Tikiri Kathandara, Komadu Hene Yaluwo, Nam Gam Upatha, etc., are some of her works, which have been recommended for school syllabus. Her book Panchala Saha Panchila was also recommended for the award for the Best Children’s Literature Book at the 2024 State Literary Awards.

Nizamudeen Udayar Mohamed (N.M.) Ameen had his school education at the Talgaspitiya Muslim Maha Vidyala, Hemmathagama Al Azhar M M V, and Zahira College, Mawanella. He had his higher education at the Kelaniya University from where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree.

Ameen began his journalism career in 1976 when he joined Lake House (Associated Newspapers of Sri Lanka) as a trainee journalist at the Dinamina Editorial. There he served as staff reporter for 24 years, covering many important rounds, including Parliament. He also held the post of News Editor at Thinakaran and Thinakaran Vaara Manjari in later years.

Ameen also served as the Managing Editor of all Tamil publications at Lake House as well as a Director and Chief Editor of the Navamani newspaper.

During his decades-long career in the media field, Ameen has also worked for the welfare of journalists and is the founder of the Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum in 1995. Currently he is the President of the SLMMF.

He has also been the Country coordinator – Sri Lanka Chapter the South Asia Free Media Association – SAFMA, and a member of the Press Complaints Commission for more than 22 years. He is also a visiting lecturer on journalism, covering the Diploma in Journalism Course at the University of Colombo, Southeastern University of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka College of Journalism and the Sri Lanka Press Institute (SLPI).

Benette Rupasinghe began his journalism career in 1963, starting out under the mentorship of D.B. Dhanapala, an iconic figure in the newspaper industry.

Rupasinghe mastered the fundamentals of news reporting and quickly became an indispensable member of the Dawasa editorial team. He left the Dawasa group in 1964 when he and nine other journalists protested against the newspaper’s stance on the Newspaper Act introduced by the government.

Following his resignation, Rupasinghe joined the Aththa newspaper in the same year as a reporter. Over the next three decades, he became a significant presence in the Aththa editorial team, working alongside renowned journalists such as Richard Wijesiri, B.A. Siriwardena, and Sirilal Kodikara. His contributions won him praise from both his peers and the public.

In 1994, he left the Aththa newspaper and joined Dinamina, a publication of Lake House. Starting as its News Editor, he rose through the ranks to become Deputy Editor, co-Editor, and eventually the Editor of Dinamina.

After leaving Lake House in 2002, Rupasinghe contributed to newspapers such as Dinakara and Peraliya. He later embraced the emerging field of online journalism, serving as the News Editor for the Lanka e News website. Despite facing challenges in the digital space, Rupasinghe continued his career with resilience.

His next significant role was with Mawbima, published by Ceylon Newspapers. Joining as the Associate Editor from its inception, Rupasinghe held various key positions, including Editor, Director, and Consultant. He dedicated 13 years to Mawbima before retiring last December, concluding a remarkable career that spanned over six decades.

Zanita Careem has been in journalism since the late 1970s. She began her career in journalism after graduating from the University of Peradeniya with a bachelor’s degree in political science. She is a past student of Sacred Heart Convent, Galle.

Careem began her journalistic career at The Sun newspaper as a Parliament reporter upon graduation. Later she joined Upali Newspapers Ltd., and worked for The Island newspaper from its inception in 1981. In her long career in journalism, Careem is responsible for taking fashion and society pages in the newspaper to a new height while also writing on numerous topics such as travel and tourism. Careem is currently the Features Editor of The Sunday Island.