June is the #Pride month where we commemorate, celebrate and recognize Two-Spirit (North American specific term to recognize two-spirit Indigenous folks), Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer, Questioning, Asexual and additional sexual…
During his recent visit to the United States, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the leader of the National People’s Power, addressed an interesting question from a Sri Lankan resident. The person highlighted the significant…
For most of his life, 35 year old artist Kanesh Thabendran has lived in a war zone where every day was a struggle for survival amid exploding bombs and falling artillery shells.…
The act of resistance gave rise to Pride. However, repression continues to be a reality wherever Pride is held. Even in places where legal equality has been accomplished and visibility is celebrated,…
On this day, one year ago, I was alone in my studio working intensely on some paintings totally unaware of the chaos emerging and gathering momentum in my city, where government supporters…
In 2022 parliamentarian and lawyer Premanath C. Dolawatte presented to parliament a Private Member’s Bill to amend Sections 365 and 365A of the Penal Code of Sri Lanka with the aim of…
In a brilliant and much needed documentary directed by Nadya Perera, one of the fast dying heritages of Sri Lankan Muslims, namely their musical traditions, has been brought to light. The Muslim…
We lock pinkies and swear oaths stronger and more fearsome than a man could dream for blood is our birthright so our ties are awash in it drenched in a secret…
Boys will be boys, And that girl who was groped in the back of the bus, Will go back home, See phantom handprints on her clothes, And wince every time someone comes…
I am the woman of my country The product of ‘culture’, of history of a nation The result of procreation The manufactured playground of patriarchy The battlefield of nationalism I am…
Are we free in 2023? To declare love and friendship without fear, without visits from police or blackmail from nosy neighbors? Are we free in 2023? To deny low wages or flagrant…
Despite the unprecedented socio-economic and political setbacks Sri Lanka is currently facing, the Government is making preparations to celebrate the country’s 75th Independence Day in grand style. Within this climate, however, there…
“They will never change” is a phrase that many Tamils overseas often hear from back home. A simple phrase articulated partly in sadness, partly in gloating. It’s difficult to condemn how various…
It was the queen’s diamond jubilee in 2012 and I shuffled past the crowds lining Fore Street in Exeter securing a front row vantage point to watch the burgundy Rolls Royce Phantom…
Today Sri Lanka faces its worst economic crisis since independence. In the coming months, people’s hardships will only worsen as more austerity is forced on them. The present crisis is a result…
