Hamas’ coordinated rocket attack on Israel, which killed hundreds of Israeli citizens and brought a new Palestine-Israel War, is another chapter in the history and expansion of the Zionist settler state. To…
Australia and Sri Lanka share a complex history of colonisation, which has deeply impacted their Indigenous populations. Both countries, members of the Commonwealth of Nations[i], grapple with the repercussions of their colonial…
Israel’s Western allies, the US in particular, believe that any investigation into Israeli war crimes in the Gaza Strip will “exacerbate tensions” and “undercut efforts to advance a negotiated two-state solution.” I…
Many Sri Lankans engage in protests for a variety of grievances but protests by refugees and asylum seekers, one of the most marginalized communities in Sri Lanka, are rare. From my memory,…
Monarchy, dictatorship, authoritarianism and despotism, even of the benevolent kind and as a result of democratic elections, are an affront to people’s struggles over the millennia for sovereignty and freedom. However, I…
Sri Lanka and Myanmar were both once colonized by the British and gained independence in the same year, 1948. That is not the only similarity these two countries share; both enjoy strong…
The ruthless repression of dissent, the growing crisis of refugees, an unchecked climate crisis and double standards of the West on human rights violations were some of the issues facing South Asia…
What did this year bring? It brought the Palais des Nations in Geneva to hear my thoughts on poetry and diplomacy in the early months of the now even more…
On December 17, 2022, fishermen in northern Sri Lanka alerted the navy about a boat in distress adrift in the sea. On December 18, the navy rescued a group of 104 people…
Following three decades of bloody and protracted civil war between government forces and the LTTE, the group was dismantled in May 2009. As reported by the U.N. panel formed by Secretary General…
In the early weeks of 1979, Iranians from across the nation rallied a common cry, a cry against imperial oppression. For more than half a century, the Pahlvi dynasty, Iran’s last ruling…
How effective are economic sanctions? With history as a paradigm, we can indisputably conclude that economic sanctions have not always proven to be effective in quelling belligerence. Just over 80 years ago,…
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…
The Permanent People’s Tribunal in The Hague (Netherlands) has commenced hearings into murder of journalist and editor Lasantha Wickrematunge based on an indictment presented by a coalition of international press freedom organizations….
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…
