She Said/He Said
Much has been written and said in the last few days since the news was released that a Sri Lankan cricketer has been charged with sexual assault by an Australian woman. Between…
Gender
No Means No: A Cricketer’s Lesson on Consent
Innocent until proven guilty is a popular legal maxim seems to be flowing out of the mouth of many men and perhaps even an equal number of women who have suddenly developed…
Online Feminism for an Inclusive Democracy
Although Sri Lanka has achieved much progress in education, health and most social indicators, the representation of women at every level of governance remains abysmally low. Since the country’s transition to democracy…
Justice is Elusive for Women of the North
Women of the north have been one of the most affected communities of the war; they are a socially excluded community. Approximately 60,000 households in the Northern Province were estimated to be…
Out of the Shadows: Violence Against Women who Love Women
Human Rights Watch Earlier this month, a news report revealed that a 22 year old woman had filed a complaint with the Human Rights Commission against the Welisara-Mahabage police. She alleged that…
Ensuring the Rights and Protection of Women Migrant Workers
The cabinet decision last month to ease the Family Background Report (FBR) regulation imposed on all women who wish to work overseas has been received with elation and consternation in equal parts….
Bodily Harm: Abortion and the Rights of Women in Sri Lanka
The title of this article is taken from a collection of short stories by Margaret Atwood who has attained celebrity cult status recently due to her dystopic novel The Handmaid’s Tale, which…
We want the Power of Equality, Justice and Love. Not Love for Power.
In late April, women from movements and collectives in the North and East marched into GotaGoGama in Galle Face to voice their concerns and issues in solidarity with the struggle in the…
To the Sisters of My Motherland
My beautiful motherland, ravaged by invaders and damaged by internal conflict over the centuries, is now drowning in the depths of economic despair. There is no respite in sight for the people…
Princes Do But Play Us
I have been thinking for the last few weeks how similar the current political situation in Sri Lanka is to a domestic violence situation where the victim takes some time to face…
Working Towards Acceptance and Recognition for the LGBTIQ Community
In a historic landmark decision, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) found that Sri Lanka’s criminalizing of same-sex sexual relations under section 365A of the Penal Code…
Finding the Crime in Reproductive Choice
International Women’s Month was heralded by the familiar sound of male decision making in Sri Lanka’s parliament. The agenda for International Women’s Day was the legalization of abortion in the instance of…
The Caged Birds Of Paradise
Being a woman in Sri Lanka in 2022 is a challenging experience. Gender in a patriarchal society whose hetero normative values are entrenched is intensely complicated by the complex fragility of South…
Corporate Sri Lanka – Still a Feudal Workplace for Women
Women in management is a catchphrase one often hears with many awards and ideals circulating around it. Yet when it comes to women in corporate Sri Lanka, while you have the avant…
The Tragic Lives of Women Victims of the PTA
Nearly three years have passed since the deadly 2019 Easter Sunday bombings. While failing to prosecute the actual perpetrators, the state has singlehandedly used the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) as a…
