Kurundi: A Runway to ’56?
In his fifth labour, Heracles cleans the Augean Stables by rerouting the rivers Alpheus and Peneus through the filthy abode of King Augeas’ divine cattle. Many believed that the aragalaya would have…
Politics and Governance
#ArchivesMatter and So Do Archivists
One of the few government officials who knows what she’s doing, Dr Nadeera Rupesinghe, remains a cut above the rest. Deeply committed to her work, she epitomises in every way the enormity…
Innovative Social Protection Measures Vital for Children to Recover from Economic Crisis
It should be universally acknowledged that the socioeconomic impact of the multiple crises which have been unfolding in Sri Lanka since the COVID-19 pandemic has invalidated all human development indicators measured since…
Combatting the Scourge of Human Trafficking
COVID-19 and the severe economic crisis has resulted in an increase in human smuggling, illegal migration and forced labour in Sri Lanka. People are heavily in debt after taking loans to tide…
Sri Lanka Barometer Survey Reveals What People Think About Freedom of Expression and Religion
The Sri Lankan government is once again in the eye of the storm for the arrest of comedian Nathasha Edirisooriya over a joke about Buddhism using the International Covenant on Civil and…
Beating the Plastic Menace
Increased deforestation, greenhouse gas emission, coal mining, chemical waste and solid waste mismanagement are some of the grave global environmental issues faced at present. The government’s initiative to establish a Climate Change…
Arming Farmers is Not the Answer to the Human-Elephant Conflict
Policymakers cursed with a lack of original thinking, especially with the possibility of elections in the offing, resort to knee jerk reactions to long standing problems rather than seek informed advice and…
State Formation and Contemporary Policy Issues in Sri Lanka
The starting point of the analysis in this article is to question the conventional approach to studying a state. The conventional approach treats the state as a concrete, self-contained entity that has…
Political Will Needed to Abolish Period Tax
On Menstrual Hygiene Day, we are reminded of the ongoing efforts to normalize menstruation worldwide by the year 2030. In Sri Lanka we are still engaged in the struggle to eliminate the…
A.K. Dissanayake Still on Track for President
In April polling for Institute for Health Policy’s (IHP) Sri Lanka Opinion Tracker Survey (SLOTS) MRP tracking of Presidential Election voting intent, support among likely voters for A.K. Dissanayake, NPP/JVP leader, slipped…
Taking Care of Refugees and Asylum Seekers
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,…
Sri Lanka’s Economic Crisis: Causes, Consequences and Cure
The principal problem faced by people due to the economic crisis is of rising prices while incomes for many remain unchanged. As a result, the poverty rate has doubled from 2021 from…
The Politics of Archaeology Spreads Discord in the North and East
Media personnel and activists are reporting several cases of Hindu religious sites being damaged, relics removed and Buddhist statues erected in their place with the collaboration of the Department of Archaeology. Hindu…
The Case of VM and Meeting Sri Lanka’s International Obligations
Star As Sri Lanka marks the end of a long and bloody civil war 14 years on, the legacy of the brutal past remains unaddressed and continues to haunt the country. The…
Politics of Addiction
This week marked the 14th anniversary of the ending of the long Eelam War. This week also saw the re-emergence of BBS head-honcho Galgoda Aththe Gnanasara to save the nation from that enterprising…