Personal page and articles by Marisa de Silva
Police impeding the movement of Tamils
11.14PM, 5th March 2013: Families of the disappeared in Sri Lanka, traveling to attend a demonstration in front of Colombo...
Continue reading »Grievances of Muslims in the North
“It is not only inhumane to be expected to live under such terrible conditions, but these conditions are also a...
Continue reading »“Nothing to call our own…” – The plight of the recently returned, resettled and landless IDPs in Sri Lanka’s North
Photo by author Recently returned to Puthumathalan “As you drive past pile upon pile of corroding vehicles stacked one above...
Continue reading »The futility that is Omanthai: Post-war Sri Lanka’s reconciliation shortfalls
Image courtesy JDS Omanthai Checkpoint, 12.30am: As the conductor switches on the bright florescent lights inside the bus, the bus...
Continue reading »The rape of a 13 year old and paramilitary presence in Jaffna
March 3, 2012 marked a very dark ebb in our society as it saw the horrific rape and murder of...
Continue reading »Who is “Pulidaran?”: Reflections on International Day of Democracy
Photo courtesy Vikalpa Who is “Pulidaran?” What everyone knows – “On July 15, 2008, Pulidaran reportedly shot Kanapathipillai alias Satchi...
Continue reading »Sinhala and Tamil New Year in Jaffna, Sri Lanka: Ground realities
Sinhala & Tamil New Year when I was growing up was always a much-awaited annual event in our neighbourhood. We’d...
Continue reading »Proud to be Sri Lankan?
Citizenship, as I know it, is a means by which citizens of a particular country are recognized as entities of...
Continue reading »Soldier: Hero, villain or both?
Each time I see a soldier, my mind shifts into ‘mode chaos’. When I was a kid, things were black...
Continue reading »“Oya Sinhalade? Demalade?” – Questioning a question in post-war Sri Lanka
“Oya Sinhalade? Demalade?” I can’t begin to count the number of times I’ve had that question asked from me over...
Continue reading »Ramblings of an outsider in Jaffna – 1
I’ve moved to Jaffna on work. Everyone I know seems to think I’ve done something great and inspiring, to have...
Continue reading »An open letter to the Remote Control Diaspora
Note: Contrary to what you might assume from the title, this is not a general onslaught on the diaspora at...
Continue reading »What must it be like to live behind these Kovil gates?
[Authors note: This is something I wrote a few months ago, that still resonates I believe with our society today.]...
Continue reading »We, The Spectator State
A young boy was drowned in broad daylight this week. Though not a single newspaper carried it, I’m told B....
Continue reading »Even post-war, discrimination runs deep in Sri Lanka
It was one night some years ago that I realized how deep discrimination against Tamils runs in Sri Lanka. We...
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