Interview: Deconstructing the CTF Report
View a short video with key quotes here, or below: Q: What do you think are the most important points that people should focus on in the recently released Consultation Task Force…
Author: Groundviews
Forecast for 2017: Sepali Kottegoda
This is the second in a series of video interviews forecasting what 2017 will have in store across different sectors, including women’s rights, economics, and arts and culture. Sepali Kottegoda, Executive Director of Women…
Forecast for 2017: Janeen Fernando
This is the first in a series of video interviews forecasting what 2017 will have in store across different sectors, including women’s rights, economics, and arts and culture. Janeen Fernando from Verité Research speaks…
Press conference of Consultations Task Force (CTF): Full video
We broadcast live almost the complete press conference of the Consultations Task Force (CTF), held on 5th January 2017 (Thursday) at the Media Ministry auditorium around the launch of its final report,…
Groundviews’ Top 10 Most Read Articles in 2016
Two years into a Maithripala Sirisena presidency, Sri Lankan polity and society are still grappling with dealing with the past, all the while buffeted by new and equally worrying issues. This is…
Post Mortem: The ‘ethics’ of assault
Media ethics became the focal point of discussion at a ‘post-mortem’ on a recent incident involving the Navy Commander assaulting journalist Roshan Gunasekera as he covered the Navy action to open the…
Human Rights in 2016: Aspiring for more
On January 8, 2015, President Maithripala Sirisena took office, making ambitious promises of good governance, transparency and openness. It was hoped his surprise victory would change the way Sri Lanka tackled rights…
Petition signed by over 5,000: Inaction of Police in face of extremism
Photograph courtesy Fox News ### Dear Mr. Jayasundara, Attached herewith, is a follow-up Complaint to you, signed by 5000+ people from Sri Lanka, regarding the inaction of the police against extremist groups,…
‘Corridors of Power’ exhibition in Jaffna
Auditorium of the Jaffna Public Library 22 – 24 November 2016 Open 10am to 6pm Entrance free for all. What is a constitution? What place and relevance, if any, does it have…
Budget 2017: The good, bad and ugly
Mixed feelings prevail in the wake of Budget 2017 being presented in Parliament. Overall, the Budget was fairly holistic in coverage, being broadly linked to Prime Minister Wickremesinghe’s statements to Parliament earlier…
Guided Tour: ‘Corridors of Power’ at the WINGS Festival of Arts
Led by the input of Asanga Welikala and in collaboration with Channa Daswatta, ‘Corridors of Power’ through architectural drawings and models, interrogates key moments in Sri Lanka’s constitutional evolution since 1972. The…
Continued impunity: Journalist killings unresolved in 2016
In 2016, Sri Lanka was removed from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) Impunity Index. Each year, CPJ reviews countries for a 10-year period. If there are five or more unsolved cases, the…
Kajan and Sulakshan: Tragic symbols of ongoing police brutality
Featured image courtesy Tamil Guardian On Monday and Tuesday, IGP Pujith Jayasundera’s mobile number, given out to the public just months before, rang unanswered. The reason – the shooting of two youths,…
The President, prisons and a question of justice
AP Photo/Sanka Gayashan, via South China Morning Post President Maithripala Sirisena, in an exclusive interview with the today, noted the following. Question: In your statement you referred to the detention of officers…
Can art transform conflict?
Does art have a role in reconciliation? Does it help in healing trauma? Can the creative power of arts be used as a catalyst for action – especially among those who have…