
Unpacking Two Core Shortcomings of the ATA
For forty years, human rights activists have demanded repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) of 1979, which the state has used to terrorize minorities with impunity. Ultimately the threat of…
For forty years, human rights activists have demanded repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) of 1979, which the state has used to terrorize minorities with impunity. Ultimately the threat of…
A cascade of reports from human rights organisations including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have drawn attention to rise of authoritarian and nationalistic regimes around the world that is having an…
The Anti-Terrorism Bill gazetted by the government in March highlights a critical issue: the interconnectedness of oppressive laws. As the Anti-Terrorism Bill refers to rehabilitation is the Bill in any way connected…
Sri Lanka awaited the IMF bailout package to find some breathing space so that it can provide basic needs of energy, medicine, food and essential inputs for agriculture, industry and services. Following…
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…
Kamala Vasuki is an artist and feminist activist who has continuously reacted and responded to oppressive, marginalizing and silencing mechanisms through her social action and her expressions through art. The work she…
On March 17, the government published its proposed 97 page Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA). The ATA is the latest attempt by governments to respond to domestic and international criticism over the last 40…
In Sri Lanka, for decades, the state has been abusing power and violating the rights of its citizens with impunity, often in the guise of protecting the country and citizens from terrorism.…
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 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…
In a landmark case last month, the Vavuniya High Court ordered the army to produce three LTTE members who had surrendered to the military in May 2019 and have been missing ever…
Ahnaf Jazeem is a 27 year old Muslim poet from the remote village of Chilawathurai in the Mannar District. Ahnaf was arrested on May 16, 2020 by the Counter Terrorism Investigation Division…
“Come, join us in jail!” read the invitation to artist Sujith Rathnayake’s exhibition-cum-provocation, Crisis & Struggle. Indeed, a visitor to the Lionel Wendt Art Gallery in Colombo was quickly confronted by a…
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…
Sri Lanka’s national anthem presents a vision of the country as a motherland to many, life giving and filled with nature’s abundance and beauty, a place of truth seeking and wisdom. It…