Fifth Estate: Paradoxes of Digital Power
World audiences remain riveted to phone, computer and television screens, shocked as we all are by the bloody carnality of the war in Palestine, the graphic horror gripping attention by its lurid…
Year: 2024
The Perilous State of Freedom of Expression
World Press Freedom Day is observed on May 3 to remind the world that freedom of the press and freedom of expression are fundamental human rights. Many journalists have died or are…
How Social Media is Fuelling Sri Lanka’s Ethnoreligious Issues
In Nedunkeni, a small town outside Vavuniya, there is news of the destruction of an ancient Hindu monument, an athi lingam (distinguishable symbol) consecrated to Lord Siva, that stood proudly on Vedukkunaari…
US Campus Eruptions and Corporate Military Capitalism
“(Herbert Marcuse) In the 1960s universities and colleges in US became the epicentre of anti-war protests against indiscriminate US bombing and destruction in Vietnam and Cambodia and those protests soon spread to…
Sajith Premadasa Reduces Gap with A.K. Dissanayake in Presidential Election
The Institute for Health Policy’s (IHP) Sri Lanka Opinion Tracker Survey (SLOTS) MRP provisional estimates of presidential election voting intent in March 2024 show support for SJB leader Sajith Premadasa increasing to…
SJB Leads in Parliamentary Elections For First Time Since 2022
The latest estimates from Institute for Health Policy’s (IHP) SLOTS MRP model confirm an increasing trend in support for SJB at the expense of the NPP/JVP. The SJB on 38% (+4) took…
From Absurdities to Atrocities, Again?
Voltaire (Letter to Fredrick the Great – 28.11.1770) Sri Lanka’s road to ruin was marked by miracles. The story, born in mystery, spread across the land at the speed of light. Luminous…
Get Out My Vote
How can you expect my vote when you allow Haitians arrived at our border to be picked up and deported back to the island from which they fled, where rape, murder,…
A Mural for Women Journalists from the Fearless Collective
Although Sri Lanka has had its fair share of women editors and journalists for many decades, some who ventured into areas of conflict around the country, the image of a journalist is…
Gaza: The Cruelty and Pain of Numbers
If a modern military combat involves a lot of high explosive such as large bombs and shells, the physical devastation of the area is profound. And the bigger the shell or bomb…
Five Years On: Still Seeking Justice for Easter Sunday Bombings
The churches have been restored for congregations to worship and the luxury hotels have been repaired for the elite to dine in but the families of victims are still seeking justice for…
Dr A.T. Ariyaratne: A Visionary Community Leader
The government’s decision to conduct the funeral of Dr A T Ariyaratne with state honours is a recognition of the contribution that the founder of the Sarvodaya Movement made to the country…
On Consent – Romeo and Juliet and the Draft Bill
Newscutter What is consent? When it comes to sexual relations, the concept of consent is that it must be between two consenting adults. Currently, the age of consent for girls in Sri…
Muslims Returning to Jaffna Face Many Challenges to Exist
In October 1990 some 75,000 to 100,000 Muslims in the Northern Province, about five percent of the province’s total population, were forcibly expelled from their homeland by the LTTE. In some places,…
Hakka Patas: The Bane of Elephants in Sri Lanka
Hakka patas (a cynical Sinhala term which translates as jaw breaker) are small improvised explosive devices, also known as a Homemade Explosive Device (HED), which consist of gun powder, stones, lead and…
