We Want Nothing But Justice Say Families of the Forcibly Disappeared
On September 5, excavations will begin on a mass grave found in the Kokkuthoduvai area of Mullaituvu in accordance with a court order. The new mass grave is one of around 32…
Peace and Conflict
Poetry and Photography Reveal the North’s War Trauma
Sarath Chandrajeewa’s first impressions of Jaffna came from his father’s stories about the north where he was stationed as a police officer. His father spoke of the friendliness of Jaffna people, their…
Pyromaniacs on the March
“Patriotism,” wrote Ambrose Bierce in is “The combustible rubbish ready to the torch of anyone ambitious to illuminate his name.” Patriotism is not the last refuge of the scoundrel, as Samuel Johnson…
Batalagoda Rubber Estate Workers Fight for Basic Rights
The Batalagoda private estate is situated in the Ibbagamuwa Divisional Secretariat of the Kurunegala district. Its entrance is about three kilometres from the Pangolla junction on the Dambulla-Kurunegala road and is easily…
An Alternate View of the People’s Struggle Through the Camera Lens
A short documentary film, The People’s Voice Is Louder, featuring the works of four lens-based practitioners from different parts of the country captures the energy, passion and desperation of the people’s uprising…
Sri Lanka’s Commission Addiction
The last few weeks have seen increased media coverage in a relation to a government proposal to establish a Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) for Sri Lanka. At face value, this seems…
For Stability Rule of Law Needs to be Followed
Tharindu Uduwaragedera, a young journalist of good repute, was attending a meeting for the purpose of reporting when he was forcibly dragged out of a three wheeler, grabbed by his hair and…
Art as Catalyst: Commemorating Tragedy and Advocating Change
Art is a powerful medium of expression that is incorporated by activists and advocates across multiple cultures and spaces to commemorate and establish a sense of permanent memorialization of history. In Sri…
How to Remember and not to Remember July 1983
There is a quote attributed to Morgan Freeman, which basically states that the only way to stop racism is to stop talking about it. I am not sure where, when or why…
What Happened in 83 Wasn’t a Riot: It was Murder
In 1983, a series of bloody riots swept Sri Lanka, marking the start of the country’s 26 year brutal civil war. Intermittent unrest had been occurring since the late 1950s and state…
Forty years On: Denial, Remembrance, Resistance and Hope
The horrific events of July 1983, when a wave of state organised arson and murder against Tamils left many dead, displaced or traumatised, shocked people in Sri Lanka and internationally. Many people…
Dr. Radhika Coomaraswamy on How Black July Impacted her life and Work
Dr. Radhika Coomaraswamy, a prominent lawyer, diplomat and human rights advocate, is widely recognised for her significant contributions to the field of international human rights and women’s rights. She served as the…
We Were One Until We Were Brutally Torn Apart
It was July 25, 1983 – that fateful day, which altered the trajectory of my life forever. Growing up in Colombo, we had come to accept the sad fact that ethnic conflicts…
Ambika Satkunanathan on How Black July Influenced Her Activism
An expert in Transitional Justice, accountability and reconciliation, former Commissioner of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, Ambika Satkunanathan shares a powerful story of loss and perseverance during Black July and its impact…
Bleak Memories of Black July from Bandarawela
While Colombo bore the brunt of the violence of Black July in 1983, other areas of the country were also affected. Groundviews conducted interviews with survivors in Bandarawela, many of whom described…