The Online Safety Act: A Trojan Horse for Authoritarianism
The draft of Sri Lanka’s Online Safety Act, published last week, is draconian, dangerous, and it should come as no surprise, also dumb. I’ve not studied any vocal support of the draft,…
Year: 2023
Re-inventing the Idea of University: Some Reflections and Proposals
There are two reasons that motivated me to select this topic. The first is my desire to share with you my conviction that the ruling idea of university in Sri Lanka needs…
Anti-Terrorism Bill Version 2.0: Still Worse Than the PTA
On September 15, the government published an Anti-Terrorism Bill, referred to as the ATA. The Bill is presented as a revision of an earlier version that was gazetted in March 2023, when…
Tackling Climate Vulnerabilities in the Farming Sector
Since August this year, ten districts in Sri Lanka have witnessed severe drought conditions due to the lack of seasonal rainfall. The cultivation of around 50,000 farmers has been affected due to…
Human Rights Watch Questions Credibility of Proposed Truth Commission
The government’s proposed National Unity and Reconciliation Commission (NURC) has come in for criticism from a leading international human rights organisation, which also condemns the ongoing persecution of victims’ families, human rights…
Unthinking Nation
It was the spring of infatuation. Millions of Sinhala voters saw Gotabaya Rajapaksa the way he saw himself, a colossus among men, a king reborn. He and his acolytes had spent much…
Strong Criticism and Weak Excuses: Sri Lanka at HRC
On the opening day of the 54th session of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) on September 11, member states were considering yet another report detailing abuses by the Sri Lankan regime.…
Re-Imagining Democracy in Sri Lanka
We at the BCIS began to conceptualize and plan this publication on the experience of democracy in our country at a time when the Sri Lankan people were on the verge of…
Health System Needs Urgent Support to Save Lives
Sri Lanka’s health system continues to face extreme challenges in the aftermath of the economic crisis and continued lack of health system strengthening. While some of the urgent threats such as power…
Understanding the Gender Gap in the Workforce
The issue of female labor force participation in Sri Lanka has remained a subject of discussion for several decades yet tangible progress in improving it has been elusive. As the country grapples…
Sri Lanka’s Channel 4 Problem
Perhaps I have been a little provocative in my choice of title. It’s not Sri Lanka that has a Channel 4 problem, it’s the Sri Lankan government. But in this corner of…
Jagath Weerasinghe: I Have No Art That Will Make You Comfortable
Between August 1989 and January 1990, 48 school children in Embilipitiya were abducted and murdered. Several of their bodies were found in a mass grave nearby. Some of the perpetrators, including military…
Government Attacked for Lack of Accountability Ahead of HRC Sessions
Lack of accountability by the powerful undermines the rights of numerous Sri Lankans, according to a hard-hitting report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk. The situation of…
If Only the Trees Could Speak Justice Could be Served
Sachithanandam Padmaranjani has been waiting for 14 years to hear news about her husband whom she handed over to the army in May 2009. Padmaranjani, who fled into the army controlled area…
Why Sri Lanka Has Descended into Chaos and the Way Forward Part 1
Sri Lanka is passing through a turbulent time in terms of its economy, society, governance, community cohesion, cultural spirit and ethos. After the political and social upheaval generated by the lack of…
