The Language Barrier
Sitting on Editor Selvaraja Rajasegar’s desk is a thick envelope containing details of elephant deaths on the railway track. The information took him over a month to receive, because he made the…
Author: Groundviews
Searching for Answers: 9 Years After Prageeth Eknaligoda’s Disappearance
On the the wall of Sandya Eknaligoda’s home is a black and white cartoon of a snake devouring the egg it has hatched from. The cartoon is familiar – it is the…
Reporting on identity in the Sri Lankan media: Ethics and errors
It is not uncommon to read headlines of this nature in Sri Lankan print media, with perpetrators of a crime or their suspects being identified by race. In Sinhala, Tamil and English…
2018: A Recap
2018 saw ethno-nationalism, the role of technology in moderating hate speech and freedom of expression and the impact of foreign debt, including China’s Belt and Road Initiative remain key topics in global discourse. It also…
Release Our Land As Promised: Displaced People And Supporters Write to President
Editor’s Note: The following is the text of a letter handed over to the President, Prime Minister and party leaders, asking for the release of land in the North and East to…
The Crisis and After
The crisis that prevailed in the country over the last two months has been overcome, consequent to the decision of the Supreme Court that was handed down on 13th December. While the…
“Our Request – Rs. 1000” | On the Wage Negotiations For Estate Workers
For five days, estate workers have been holding a hunger strike in front of the Fort railway station, asking for a Rs. 1000 basic wage. Currently, the workers receive Rs. 500 as…
A Historic Judgment
On December 13, there was heightened police presence outside the Supreme Court as the public awaited news on petitions challenging the Presidential proclamation on the dissolution of Parliament. Sri Lanka has remained…
A Loaded Phrase (Video)
“Why are you asking these questions?” a bystander asks. He had been watching me approach the vendors hawking their wares. Although he smiled politely as he asked, his upper lip curled, betraying…
Building An Ethos of Rights
December 10 is Human Rights Day, and marks 70 years since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted. Since inception, has dedicated itself to discussion on issues pertaining to human rights….
Nevertheless, They Persisted
On November 28, a nonpartisan group of women (and a few supportive men) walked from Galle Face Green to the Presidential Secretariat. It was raining heavily, but the group was firm in…
To the President: A request on behalf of the children of Sri Lanka
Mr. President, A single arbitrary and unilateral decision taken by you, on the 26th of October, set in motion a sequence of events that now has thrown an entire country and all…
Economic policy-making impacted by grave political instability: Friday Forum
The Friday Forum shares the despair and disgust of most Sri Lankans with recent political events in the country that have now spiraled into a serious impasse in governance. The economic, social…
#CoupLK: A Timeline
President Maithripala Sirisena’s removal of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and appointment of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa has set in motion a chain of events that, right up to the time of writing, have…
Write to the Speaker: Template of letter to report violent MPs
The Parliament of Sri Lanka approved a Code of Conduct for Members of Parliament on 7 March 2018 and adopted it with effect from 15 April 2018. Part VIII of the Code…