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Groundviews

Author: Ambika Satkunanathan

Year
Month
Colombo, Human Rights, justice, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance

Tip of the Iceberg: How Oppressive Laws Interconnect

The Anti-Terrorism Bill gazetted by the government in March highlights a critical issue: the interconnectedness of oppressive laws. As the Anti-Terrorism Bill refers to rehabilitation is the Bill in any way connected…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 04/02/202304/03/2023
Human Rights, justice, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance, Post-War, Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), Reconciliation

Anti-Terrorism Bill: The Good, Bad and the Ugly

In Sri Lanka, for decades, the state has been abusing power and violating the rights of its citizens with impunity, often in the guise of protecting the country and citizens from terrorism….

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 03/26/202303/27/2023
Colombo

Life (in and) After Death: A Story in Five Parts

Sudden death has been at the centre of my life the past few weeks. Two deaths that required me to navigate the legal systems of four countries. This entailed multiple visits to…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 01/12/2023
Colombo, Human Rights, justice, Politics and Governance

Only A Temporary Reprieve: The Supreme Court Determination on the Bureau of Rehabilitation Bill

Independent The Supreme Court’s determination on the constitutionality of the Bureau of Rehabilitation Bill was met with relief last week. While the determination affirms many fundamental principles and constitutional protections, it provides…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 10/26/2022
Human Rights, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance

Arbitrary Detention and Torture by Another Name: The Proposed Bureau of Rehabilitation

Undeterred by the economic crisis, the government continues its attempts to enact regressive, repressive and counter-productive laws. The most recent is the Bureau of Rehabilitation Bill.  Lack of legal definitions Persons to…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 09/30/202209/30/2022
Colombo, Human Rights, justice, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance, Post-War, War Crimes

The Tamil Struggle, the Aragalaya and Sri Lankan Identity

May 18, 2009. The end of the war. Of the many horrific visuals of the end of the war the one that is etched in my memory is of people crossing the…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 05/15/202205/30/2022
#GoHomeGota, Colombo, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance

Revolution by Committee and Other Ways to Kill a Protest

Infantilizing youth: a familiar trope The ongoing protests are being labelled youth protests. Yes, youth have taken the lead in the Occupy Galle Face protest, which is being sustained by their creatively…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 04/16/202205/30/2022
Colombo, Human Rights, justice, Politics and Governance

The Welikada Prison Massacre Judgment: A Damning Indictment

In November 2012 a massacre took place at Welikada Closed Prison in Colombo during which 27 imprisoned persons were killed. On January 13, 2022 one of the three persons charged, Emil Ranjan…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 02/27/202202/27/2022
justice, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance, Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA)

PTA Reform: A Farce in Multiple Acts

Over decades, regardless of the government in power the abuses enabled by the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) never ceased. They only decreased or increased depending on the regime in power. Even…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 02/06/202202/06/2022
Development, Economy, Human Rights, Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance, Post-War, Poverty, Reconciliation

Water Pumps and Chickens: Rhetoric vs Reality in the North

December 19, 2021. Jaffna town. 6 am. Three motorcycles parked one behind the other at an angle with headlights on. Two armed military personnel, clad in black, on each motorcycle. Women headed…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 01/23/202201/23/2022
Colombo, Human Rights, justice, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance, Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA)

PTA ++: Learning the Wrong International Lessons

In the name of counter-terrorism countries enact repressive laws that restrict human rights. They claim these laws will make us safer. Yet, contrary to claims of increasing national security, the tendency of…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 11/23/202111/23/2021
Human Rights, justice, Politics and Governance, Presidential Election 2019, Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), Terrorism

Creating National (In)security: Prevention of Terrorism Act and the Death Penalty

Today is the World Day Against the Death Penalty  Today, when globally the call for the abolition of the death penalty is renewed and its inhumane and cruel nature is highlighted, we…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 10/10/202110/10/2021
Colombo, Human Rights, justice, Politics and Governance

Fighting the War on Drugs the Wrong Way

This article is a summary of my report Broken System: Drug Control, Detention and Treatment of People who Use Drugs in Sri Lanka published by Harm Reduction International, which discusses both the…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 08/10/202108/16/2021
Colombo, Human Rights, justice, Politics and Governance, Politics and Governance, Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA)

False Promises: The Myth of Security and the Prevention of Terrorism Act

For decades human rights activists have highlighted the draconian nature of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), which promises safety and security, yet in practice makes each citizen vulnerable to being arbitrarily…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 07/14/202110/11/2021
Colombo, Human Rights, justice, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance, Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA)

The ‘Punishment Bureaucracy’ and the Normalization of Torture and Impunity

Justice Kulatunga During the period March 2020 to 24 June 2021 there were reports of six cases of encounter killings, twenty-seven cases of police violence, eight deaths in police custody, four deaths…

Ambika Satkunanathan Ambika Satkunanathan on 06/26/202110/11/2021

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