The Structure of Tamil Names
My name is Sivapuranam Thevaram, and my origins are in the northern parts of Sri Lanka. I usually identify myself as a Sri Lankan Tamil, strictly in that order. And that order…
Year: 2009
An Unprecedented Presidential Election and the Future of Sri Lankan Democracy
Never before has such a major rift opened up between the political and military leadership in electoral politics as what has been witnessed over the recent months. By luring Sarath Fonseka to…
The rights of the disabled: Forgotten and forsaken?
Of the more than 6 billion people in the world, the UN estimates that more than 500 million of them are disabled. That is approximately 8%. In the early 1900s and before,…
The Travelling Circus on video: Looking at war and IDPs through theatre
Obligingly recorded by Young Asia Television at the request of , produced by Mind Adventures, directed by Tracy Holsinger and recently staged in Colombo. An in-depth review of the production is published on…
The Battle of the ‘Commons’ and (De) militarizing the Sri Lankan Society – Part 2
Continued from Militarization is a product and integral part of the neoliberal economy. The contribution of well meaning liberal constitutionalists and peace activists to demilitarization is limited because they ignore (even legitimate)…
The rights of the disabled in Sri Lanka: Marginal or mainstream?
As part of our video series for human rights day 2009 (falling on 10 December), sought to focus attention on disability and the rights of the disabled in our country. Sunethra speaks…
Human Rights in Post-War Sri Lanka: Challenges and opportunities
To commemorate Human Rights Day, falling today, interviewed a number of leading activists in Sri Lanka to find out their perspectives on current challenges facing human rights in post-war Sri Lanka. This…
The Relevance of Human Rights – A Lankan Perspective
[Editors Note: Prof. Rajan Hoole, co-founder of UTHR (J) and co-author of the Broken Palmyra, presents this piece exclusively to Groundviews for Human Rights Day 2009]. One important indicator of Human Rights…
100 days in hard labour and counting: The plight of J.S. Tissainayagam
Today is Human Rights Day, which honours the UN’s adoption and proclamation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) on 10 December 1948, the first global enunciation of human rights. Today is…
The Battle of the ‘Commons’ and (De) militarizing the Sri Lankan Society – Part 1
“Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.” Benjamin Franklin “Common candidate” Gen. Fonseka and “common man” Mahinda Rajapaksha must both face,…
THE RAJAPAKSE REGIME AND THE FOURTH ESTATE
Authors note: This is the first of two articles. The second is in draft form and is tentatively entitled’. It may appear first in print form, but that remains to be seen.…
A brief response to Dr G.L. Pieris
I refer to Dr G.L Peiris’s interview extracts published by the . He says “Any legislative measure to abolish the executive presidency must satisfy two conditions – it must be supported by…
SRI LANKA MAY WANT – AN ECONOMIC VISION 2030
The risks and rewards of a Development Plan for Sri Lanka Sri Lanka today is in the category of a poor country status, listed in the “Institutional Investor”, September 2009 Country Credit…
Presidential Election 2010: The choice before pluralist democrats
Q: Why did you fall out with Rajapaksa? A: Five days after we won the war, at a meeting of the (president’s) Security Council, he said he’d stop recruiting new people in…
The Dynamics of the “War Heroes’ Battleâ€
Undoubtedly, Comrade Wickramabahu will attract a politically mature vote-base around him – particularly those who are disgusted with the Mahinda-regime’s fascistic rule the way it’s been treating the Tamil civilians. This minority…
