Prelude to Elections
Most politicians have a questionable relationship with reality. The Rajapaksas operate in a reality that is all their own. Asked why brother Gotabaya fled the country, Mahinda Rajapaksa replied, “Who accuses him…
Districts
Women in the Estate Sector Face Many Layers of Discrimination
Maatram Women played a significant part in the growth and stability of the plantation economy throughout the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Women were brought along with men by the British…
Bringing Democracy Back Through People’s Power
Sri Lanka’s politics is at the crossroads. One path opened before the people is that of re-democratisation. It comes after decades of de-democratisation carried out by different factions of the country’s political…
The Right Queue
Poems are waiting in a queue. But that is alright. They are poems only, not people lining up for kerosene, or fish, or paper. or petrol. I write them in a…
Towards a Political Vision with Social Justice and Pluralism
Statfor The post war Sri Lankan state’s inability to fulfil the demands of global finance capital has devastated the lives of millions of Sri Lankans. This is a country where we see…
Cleaning the Augean Stables – the Next Task for Sri Lanka’s Youth
Over the past four months, the young people of Sri Lanka have proved to be more courageous and innovative than preceding generations. In the past, the youth have expressed their frustrations and…
Converting Conflict into Coexistence Between Humans and Elephants
Photo courtesy of Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne The situation of Asian elephants, Sri Lankan elephants in particular, is critical due to the increase in human-elephant conflicts. Even before the current economic crisis, Human-Elephant…
What’s Left
We are tired, and we have cooking gas now, and fuel shipments have docked. So we will get back to the business of living and not worry anymore about the…
Free Joseph
Free Joseph Stalin. Let Father Jeewantha Peiris walk out of hiding in peace to attend to his parishioners. Let Mahanama Thero stop on the side of the road to counsel passers…
The Aragalaya Awakens People’s Sleeping Sovereignty
July 9, 2022 should resonate as a historic moment in Sri Lanka’s political history – its Bastille Day. After months of public protests demanding that the president and prime minister resign amidst…
Life is a Never Ending Queue
Recently one of my friends updated his Facebook status. “Watching breaking news from Temple Trees,” it read, along with a selfie of him and more people watching the news on TV. “They…
Legal System Damaged by Illegal Arrests and Detentions
Illegal arrests and illegal detentions do not only harm individuals – they also cause irreparable damage to the legal system as a whole. The recent wave of arrests of those who participated…
To Survive, Even Thrive
My country will survive corruption in parliament, arbitrary arrests ordered by the executive, bodies washing up at Galle Face, at the Beira Lake. My country will survive farmers shooting elephants…
Economic Crisis Badly Impacting Most Vulnerable
Families in Sri Lanka are fast adopting negative coping strategies to deal with the economic crisis. A recently concluded Rapid Needs Assessment by Save the Children revealed that families are resorting to…
Governor, listen
Photograph by Marisa de Silva Father Jeewantha Peiris, Mahanama Thero, Joseph Stalin, from diverse denominations and political persuasions, are Aragalaya heroes, who called the bluff of the emperor, leading to his…