The Future of the Aragalaya
Lenin once remarked that there are decades when nothing happens and weeks when decades happen. Much more than a decade passed last week at Galle Face. Beginning with Mahinda Rajapaksa’s desperate and…
Politics and Governance
Questions of Justice and Accountability
As videos of helicopters taking off in the early hours of Tuesday May 10 appeared on social media, rumours swirled that some members of the Rajapaksa family had fled Colombo. While the…
PTA Amendment Bill: A Facade for Backdoor Human Right Violations?
Counterterrorism and protecting human rights has been a long standing dichotomy on a global scale. The same fate was experienced in the Sri Lankan context with the civil war and internal insurrections….
From Mullivaikkal to Nakba and Ballymurphy, Truth is the First Victim
Sri Lanka is grappling with its worst economic crisis since its independence in 1948. But amid this serious economic situation, Tamils on the island and around there world are going to commemorate…
Rescuing the Poor from the Economic Abyss
At a small grocery store, an elderly man pointed at a particular packet of biscuits and asked what the price was – it was Rs.70. The man asked if there were biscuits…
SWRD and The Poisoned Well Of Nationalism
I was introduced to the existence of a publicly shared negative attitude towards S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike for the first time at a book launch in Colombo several years ago. The author had decided…
The Tamil Struggle, the Aragalaya and Sri Lankan Identity
May 18, 2009. The end of the war. Of the many horrific visuals of the end of the war the one that is etched in my memory is of people crossing the…
In Search of a National Government
My favourite politician, Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, tweeted a few days ago on her preferred course of action for the way out of the present mess we find ourselves in. “Ok, let’s talk…
GotaGoGama, Galle Face and the Youth
“Country is facing one of the most difficult and challenging economic, political and socially decisive times in its history…Government has erred by banning use of chemical fertilizer and not going for a…
The Difference We Long For
A few days ago, a Buddhist monk and two Christian priests were beaten up opposite the official residence of the prime minister of the country. They were among more than 30 peaceful…
A Schizoid Political Culture
Attackers roaring obscenities, screams of victims, the thunk of metal poles on defenceless humans and the crack of smashed protester shelters all combined to almost drown out the Bhikkus’ serene chanting of…
The Inverted October Coup
The president of Sri Lanka, sensing the serious frustration of the electorate at non-performance, sacks his prime minister and swears in another prime minister. The former prime minister was reinstated but even…
Is the Aragalaya Checkmated?
Ranil Wickremesinghe, in his first interview as the new prime minister, said he would protect the GotaGoGama site while Army Commander Shavendra Silva said that if the protesters were not violent they…
Ensuring Political Stability for Economic Recovery
The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) calling the IGP and the Army Commander for questioning about the failure to prevent the attack on peaceful demonstrators on May 9 is an…
Challenging Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists
The Permanent People’s Tribunal in The Hague (Netherlands) has commenced hearings into murder of journalist and editor Lasantha Wickrematunge based on an indictment presented by a coalition of international press freedom organizations….
