The banality of evil
How can those who tortured and those who were tortured co-exist in the same land? How to heal a country that has been traumatised by repression if the fear to speak out…
How can those who tortured and those who were tortured co-exist in the same land? How to heal a country that has been traumatised by repression if the fear to speak out…
News from Sri Lanka had been disquieting for the last several months with the escalation of conflict, the collapse of the rule of law and the protection of fundamental human rights. It…
Tiran Alles was Mahinda Rajapaksa’s emissary to the North-East during the run-up to the Presidential Elections in November 2005. Now he is in custody and shares a fate similar to that of…
“Majority decisions tell us what people want at the moment, but not what it would be in their interest to want if they were better informed… The argument for democracy presupposes that…
This columnist spent the last two weeks in the UK and the US speaking to opinion and policy makers on the human rights and humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka. In these conversations…
Kumbi Kathawa (Ant Story) was conceived by Anjalika, Chitrasena and Vajira’s daughter. She was inspired by a Russian children’s story. The ballet is choreographed and directed by Anjalika and Mahesh, who has…
Abilash Jeyarajah looks like any other ordinary toddler, living with his family in a small village near Kalmunai in the Ampara district of Sri Lanka. But life was not so ordinary for…
The Dragon, a drama written by the late Russian playwright Eugene Schwartz, is a modern day political fairytale. It tells the story of Lancelot, who on his quest to slay the dragon,…
During this year’s Vesak week in Sri Lanka, Buddhists celebrated the birth, life and death of their Lord. Principles were recalled: that it is a bad thing to drink alcohol, to eat…
By Kumar Rupesinghe Normally it would seem that nobody wants to have war. War is so horrendous and so devastating that nobody in their right minds would want a war. But unfortunately,…
“Australia should add its voice to this call and put real pressure on the Sri Lankan Government to accept an international monitoring body. The conflict can only be resolved through dialogue, but…
My article is based on an encounter with two Sinhalese youth in Puttlam recently. Both had served in the Army. Both had lost limbs, though we didn’t find this out till much…
Information sharing on various levels has become something of a modern day phenomenon, no doubt fuelled by the extensive use of the internet. Perhaps it is also a result of a heightened…
The recent massacre of a family in Delgoda gripped the attention of the media recently. Reports today indicate that several houses of those suspected to be behind the massacre were torched by…
The full title should have read, “I am an enemy of the State as defined by the Rajapaksa administrationâ€Â. Truncation was not meant for sensational optics alone. The accusation is increasingly made…