Behind Bars
Featured image from Sri Lanka Mirror On August 13, 20 female inmates climbed onto the roof of Welikada Prison and began a protest. There were various reasons attributed to the prisoner’s motivations,…
Human Rights
The Agony and Ecstasy of a Pogrom: July 1983
Featured image courtesy the Quint Editor’s Note: This article first appeared in “Exploring Confrontation: Sri Lanka- Politics, Culture and History” and is not easily available online. It is published here, with permission, to…
Deep Impact: Emmerson’s Report Reveals Lasting Legacy of PTA
Featured image courtesy Middle East Online On July 23, former UN Special Rapporteur on Counter-Terrorism and Human Rights, Ben Emmerson released a report following on from his visit to Sri Lanka in…
A Forgotten Community: Remembering Black July
Writer S Karunakaran reflects on Black July from the perspective of a marginalised and often forgotten community – the Malaiyagha Tamils – and specifically those who tried to resettle in the North…
The Impact of Violence: Remembering Black July
“When we talk of the 1983 unrest, the word ‘riot’ is used very often,” M Mayuran of the Mass Movement for Social Justice says. “But that word is quite complicated. A riot…
On Collective Humanity: Remembering Black July
“If the majority thinks that a minority community is posing a threat to them or are developing in a manner that creates fear among them, then it is a problem for the…
On Documenting: Remembering Black July
“There is no proper record of what happened, or how the killings took place during that time. We do not have any information or documentation to pass it on to our future…
Media As Memory: Remembering July 1983
Featured image by Raisa Wickrematunge The flat, cardboard boxes are stacked almost to the ceiling. The neatly glued label of one of them is clearly visible when a door opens – briefly…
Impunity in Sri Lanka and the Commissions of Inquiry into Disappearances
Featured image by Raisa Wickrematunge The violation of the language rights following the enactment of Official Languages Act No. 33 of 1956, started the process of human rights violations of the Tamils…
Reflections on July 1983: 35 Years On
Featured image courtesy Forum for Peaceful CoExistence July 23 marked the 35th anniversary of one of post independent Sri Lanka’s darkest chapters, the July 1983 pogrom against Tamil civilians throughout the country. An…
3 Days in a Kovil: An Eyewitness Remembers Black July
Editor’s Note: This video was created by sister site Maatram, and forms part of an ongoing series marking 35 years since Black July. Featured image courtesy Selvaraja Rajasegar “As we travelled a…
In the wake of the past, upholding all human rights
Thirty-five years ago, human rights and democracy in Sri Lanka unravelled in a spectacular manner. Yet the background to these blatant abuses included an erosion of economic and social rights, with which…
On Facebook’s New Misinformation Policy for Sri Lanka
Featured image courtesy the Verge 20 July 2018 Colombo, Sri Lanka Recent news reports have surfaced noting that Facebook will be proactively taking steps to remove misinformation that could lead to people…
Clowns or Murderers: Our Hobson’s Choice
Featured image courtesy DBS Jeyaraj “There is no Viyath Maga; it is just a word for a programme. Clearly this is a carrying forward of Mahinda Chinthanaya…” Mahinda Rajapaksa (4.7.2018)[i] The news…
University Academics Condemn the Incendiary Statements against HRCSL
Photo courtesy Yaal Ruvi As members of the academic community in Sri Lanka, we are appalled by the increasing belligerence with which certain individuals appear to be making statements directed at public…