Building a Future: the Young People who Chose to Stay
Last year saw a record number of passports issued – nearly 875,000; they were not for people going on holiday but for workers escaping an economic meltdown and an unstable future. According…
Advocacy
Fighting for Rights in a Repressive State
Piyath Nikeshala, a prominent social media activist, was attacked with machetes in broad daylight by former deputy mayor of Kaduwela Municipal Council, SLPP member Chandika Abeyrathne and his supporters. And then Piyath,…
From Pilgrim to Terrorist
One morning in April 2008, Rameshkumar picked up a hire in his tuk tuk in Digana and was driving to the destination when he was suddenly accosted by a group in a…
The Hardships of the Forgotten Plantation Sector
The plantation sector is vividly different from other sectors and is yet to be shown empathy and true care. Female workers leave home for work by 7 am and come home by…
Decriminalisation of Same-Sex Conduct: Another Empty Promise or a Reality?
The basis and the procedure of the criminal law in Sri Lanka was derived from English law. After Sri Lanka was colonised by the British, British laws were gradually applied throughout the…
Teaching English for Promoting Social Cohesion
Had we had just one language in the world, human history would have been written without many of the ugly stains caused by racial and ethnic conflicts. Of course, one may point…
Justice for the Disappeared: Will the Next Generation Take on the Fight?
Veteran human rights campaigner Reverend Marimuthu Shakthivel’s voice is tinged with frustration when he says, “There will come a day where we will see the end of our struggle for the rights…
Microfinance: Addressing a Social Disaster
Microfinance is an essential aspect of the economy where low income people often lack access to structured, formal financial services. Improved access to financial services among the low income population assists in…
Mainstreaming Education for Children with Disabilities
Despite having a high literacy rate, free education and good humanitarian development indicators, Sri Lankan society’s attitudes towards the disabled are still mired in the past although the country has 1.4 million…
Meeting the Target to End AIDS by 2030
Sri Lanka is aiming to end AIDS by 2030 in accordance with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. The government has taken many positive measures in the fight against AIDS including educating people…
Sister Milburga Fernando: A Sister-in-Arms
When I began researching the life and work of Father Michael Rodrigo, a Sri Lankan Catholic priest who was murdered in the Uva Province in 1987, I was directed to a nun…
Who Goes to Geneva and Why
The 51st session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is currently reviewing a new draft resolution on Sri Lanka. The core group invited the Sri Lankan government, other governments and…
Decriminalising Consensual Same-sex Sexual Relations: Amendments Versus Repeal
In a major development in the human rights arena, SLPP parliamentarian and lawyer Premanath C. Dolawatte handed over a private member’s bill to President Ranil Wickremesinghe seeking to amend laws that marginalise…
The Tea is Cold: Cinema as Social Responsibility
A young man from Colombo, Randika, travels to Jaffna on an assignment to find out how the war has affected people there. At first he is more interested in sharing photographs on…
Homo Digitalis and the Citizen Journalist
An interesting dimension to the current conflict playing out in Ukraine amidst increasing aggression and spirited defiance, amidst airstrikes, war crimes, sanctions and diplomacy are the varied approaches to the flow of…
