The Statue of Tara: It’s Time to Come Home
She stands tall at the heart of the British Museum’s South Asian exhibit. In all her gilded bronze glory, her eyes search passing spectators, although the jewels which once adorned them have…
Long Reads
Bringing Democracy Back Through People’s Power
Sri Lanka’s politics is at the crossroads. One path opened before the people is that of re-democratisation. It comes after decades of de-democratisation carried out by different factions of the country’s political…
21st Amendment: A Way Out of Sri Lanka’s Multiple Crises?
Sri Lanka’s economic crisis has attracted global attention and national fury. The irresponsible decisions of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa – cutting taxes, banning fertiliser and continuing with non-essential infrastructure projects financed by debt…
The Role of Government in Mal-governed States
What role should citizens expect a government to play in public life? The theoretical case for state intervention in the economy in the public finance discourse is based on an unstated assumption:…
A Tribute to Malathi de Alwis and Her Work
Malathi de Alwis, friend, mentor, teacher, feminist, anthropologist, birder, foodie and the most amazing cook, passed away on January 21. As we mourn this utterly devastating, untimely loss of one of the…
Other State Forests and the Conservation of Sri Lanka’s Rainforest Biota
Circular MWFC/1/20201 issued on 4 November by the Ministry of Wildlife and Forest Conservation has caused widespread concern and consternation. This circular seeks to make all Sri Lanka’s other state forests (OSFs)…
Nonsense Upon Stilts? Revisiting Justifications of Presidentialism In Sri Lanka
With the enactment of the Twentieth Amendment, Sri Lanka embarks yet again down the fraught path of authoritarian presidentialism. Whether this latest adventure ends in a democratic nightmare, or is as fleeting…
A Crisis in Communications
2020 has been defined by COVID-19; a year in which citizens, governments and medical first-responders found themselves in a whirlwind of unprecedented pandemonium. Adding to the confusion have been patterns of broken…
Sri Lanka: Rising Autocracy and Historical Experiences
S. P. Huntington has presciently warned that democratic transitions are vulnerable and reversible if ruling elites do not show genuine commitment to democratic values. He argues: “When they are out of power,…
The 20th Amendment: Building a Future and Forgetting the Past
At the ceremonial opening of our first Parliament on 4th February, 1948 Mr. S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike addressed the nation with these words: “It is true that no people can live…
20th Amendment, Sovereignty of The People and The Need for Approval at A Referendum
Photo courtesy New Indian Express The 20th Amendment to the Constitution Bill (20A) has been published. If I were to describe it in one sentence the 20th Amendment seeks to take the…
The Past and the Present in the (Re)Constitution of the State
By Asanga Welikala and Roshan de Silva-Wijeyeratne The election of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in November 2019 marked the beginning of a new era of a Sinhala-Buddhist nationalist ascendancy in Sri Lanka. The…
The Nineteenth A: A Legacy Worth Recalling Despite its Impending Demise
Among as many as nineteen amendments introduced to the Constitution of 1978, three stand as having positively contributed to fulfilling Sri Lankan society’s democratic needs. The first is the Thirteenth Amendment. The…
The Night on the Horizon
Phillip Larkin (Going) That was Fort magistrate Ranga Dissanayake speaking in open court, on June 24th 2020. The pictures the CID officials wanted to show possible witnesses just before an identity parade…
For a political-economic understanding of land conflicts in Eastern Sri Lanka
Photo courtesy When talking about conflicts around land in eastern Sri Lanka, explanations based on ethnic identity spring to mind. Sri Lanka’s ethnic majority, for example, is seen as having the right…
