The Abortion Debate: Mismatched and Misplaced?
Image courtesy Asia Society I once came into contact with a woman on account of a professional relationship we had. We had met to discuss her prolonged absence from work. With a…
Healthcare
Roti and Rice: Examining Imbalances in Nutrition for Children in the Estate Sector
It’s 10:30 am at the Social Institute for the Development of Plantation Sector (SIDPS) pre-school on the Strathspey estate in Maskeliya. The children, most of them around five years old, queue up…
Why Doctors and Students Are Protesting Against Sri Lanka’s Only Private Medical College
In Sri Lanka, doctors and students have been protesting for months, requesting the government to shut down the private South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM), the only private university in Sri Lanka currently…
On SAITM and the “medical mafia”
There has been sustained protest and trade union action by the Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA), the Medical Faculty Students’ Union, and Inter University Students Federation (IUSF) against the judgment of the Court…
From isolation to integration: addressing stigma on World Mental Health Day
The very mention of the town “Angoda” has widespread negative connotations, as the National Institute of Mental Health is situated there. This points to the wider issue of stigma that surrounds the…
Time the People said a loud and a firm “NO” to Medics without Ethics
Picture courtesy NewsFirst Mission statement – Handbook (2014) for Students of Colombo Medical Faculty I respect the medical profession when it respects the “Oath of Hippocrates“. I will respect them if they…
De-stigmatising HIV On World AIDS Day
Today (December 1) is World AIDS Day. According to reports, approximately 4 people are diagnosed with HIV every week in Sri Lanka, with an estimated 5 more going undetected. The National STD/AIDS…
Coke: One; Media: Zero
Photo courtesy @dumindaxsb How Coke is undermining the media and Good Governance in Sri Lanka Almost all major mainstream media outlets in Sri Lanka are now owned, or partially owned by individuals representing…
New evidence of torture by Sri Lanka’s security forces
New evidence has emerged that Sri Lanka’s security forces have perpetrated acts of torture and sexual violence against ethnic Tamils as recently as last year, according to a UK-based rights group. In…
Medical Administration and Relief within the Vanni Pocket, January to mid-May 2009
Image from author’s blog Beyond Imagination in Service to Humankind: Medical Administration and Relief within the Vanni Pocket, January to mid-May 2009 Amidst the obfuscations and cumulus clouds of propaganda that have…
A Call for Accountability: Death of a Young Woman in Kilinochchi
On November 28, 2013 a pregnant mother from Malaiyalapuram North[1] (Malaiyalapuram) in Kilinochchi District died at Jaffna Teaching Hospital. She was 17 and 2/7 weeks pregnant at the time of her death….
Women and children in the North: Sexual harassment, grievances and challenges
In September 2013, Watchdog travelled to the Vanni[1] and met with survivors of sexual violence, women’s rights activists and representatives of women’s groups. This report is based on information provided during interviews…
Above the Law: Violations of Women’s Reproductive Rights in Northern Sri Lanka
Image courtesy The Social Architects This report, TSA’s fourth, outlines the findings of the organization’s September 2013 field mission on coercive contraception clinics in Kilinochchi District. In early September of this year,…
Sri Lankan men and rape: What the Sri Lankan media missed
I read with great interest this article in the Guardian about nearly quarter of men in Asia-Pacific admitting to committing rape according to a new UN study. As Sri Lanka was one…
Coercive Population Control in Kilinochchi
Photo courtesy The Social Architects [Editors note: Please read by The Social Architects, which expands on this initial report and address the points made in the comments as well as in other…