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…
Language
Being Divided to be (Mis)ruled
Language, according to linguists, is what makes us human but the fake identities it creates can urge us to form imaginary barriers between us that have been the bane of humanity. Among…
Literacy and the Dimensions of the Digital Divide
Literacy rates in Sri Lanka have hovered in the high 90s for the past decade or so, impressive figures no doubt; enough for the country to be publicised in official publications as…
Learning Sri Lankan Sign Language
Raise your right hand (or your left if you are left-handed), with the palm facing forward and the fingers spread out. Now form an O with your thumb and your middle finger…
Why Language Matters
Sri Lanka’s post-colonial language policy was neither fair not desirable. A largely non-English speaking population was governed by a small class of English-speaking elite. Weary of being excluded from governance and public…
Countering Harmful Speech: Why Trust the State?
Words can, and often do, harm others. A society is usually justified in restricting speech that causes harm. The nature and extent of such restrictions depends on the type of harm involved.…
Speaking Malay in Kompannaveediya
The Kompannaveediya area has seen rapid transformation over the last decade. What is being termed ‘urban development’, in the form of skyscrapers and luxury properties, has come at the cost of several…
A Hellish Year: Misogyny in the Public Service Sector
The post itself was perfect at a glance – everything I could have imagined and more, and even stood up against my questioning nature. Regardless of the name of the position and…
A Continuing Conversation on National Reconciliation Policy
Laksiri Fernando’s prompt response of 6th June to mine reveals that he has not read my article carefully. It is precisely to avoid needless finger pointing that I suggested that the Sinhalese should…
Lost in Translation: Shortfalls in the implementation of Sri Lanka’s official languages policy
The Official Language Act of 1956 replaced English as the official language of then-Ceylon with Sinhala, failing to give recognition to the Tamil language. It was only three decades later, in the…
Writing to Reconcile: A personal journey
Image from Write to Reconcile Last fall, in Toronto, I went to see a play that was written by one of the writers in this anthology, Sindhuri Nandakumar. The play was called…
Adventures in Print Journalism
Photo by REUTERS/Philip Brown 2016 was, among other things, a year conspicuous for illustrating the successes of several years of political rebranding, at least in the West. Over the past few years,…
Ceylon’s First Moor Journalist
The Muslim community is at the centre of news each day- rarely for the right reasons. The unfolding of the Islamic State has shown the worst ways in which religious identities could…
Lessons Learnt on Reconciliation
After opening night of on the 26th of November 2009, a small group remained behind long after the show finished. They sat dotted around the small amphitheatre, not speaking a word. Theatre…
Let the local discussion be your lodestar
Image via Having been in the Washington D.C. area for a fair amount of time and having read a few of the really good contributions to the most recent series, I got…
