Patriot, Bared
The Rajapaksas are at war. Not with the pandemic but with those who inform the public about the pandemic. Sudharshini Fernandopulle, the only minister who seems to possess a brain, a vertebra…
Politics and Governance
Vaccine Inequality and the Cost to Garment Sector Workers
Sri Lanka’s admired initial coordinated response to the COVID-19 pandemic is now a distant memory. The second wave that multiplied from the Brandix factory in Minuwangoda should have sounded a warning to…
Not Seeing the Forest for the Trees
The Japanese practice of Shinrin Yoku or forest bathing, is now used as a de-stress practice in many western countries. The idea is to be in a forest, preferably alone, just sit…
12 Years of Seeking Hope After Three Decades of War
It must be an occasion for us as Sri Lankans to assess progress we have made in addressing root causes for the conflict through a political process and moving forward towards co-existence…
Understanding Covid-19 Variants
Sri Lanka, similar to many other countries in the region, is facing a rapid surge in the number of COVID-19 cases. On May 9, Sri Lanka recorded 2,672 cases, the highest number…
Extra-Judicial Killings – Dud Grenades and Smoking Guns
Last week brought the news of the deaths of two underworld figures – Melon Mabula alias Uru Jawa and Tharaka Perera Wijesekera, alias Kosgoda Tharaka. Both died in police custody, a day…
Powerful and Connected? Go to the Head of the Queue
Photo courtesy of After much persuading from friends I finally went to get my Covid vaccine. The whole of last week I tried to book a time and place through e-channelling but…
Working for Peace and Pluralism: A Sisyphian Task
According to Greek legend, Sisyphus has the wretched task of rolling a huge boulder up a hill. Just as he gets to the top, the boulder comes tumbling down and Sisyphus begins…
The Case of the Poet Without a Voice
Thaneer (Water) by Ahnaf Jazeem from the collection “Navarasam” (Nine Emotions) translated by Professor Sumathy Sivamohan and Dr. Mahendran Thiruvarangan Ahnaf Jazeem is a 26-year-old Muslim poet from the remote village of…
Won the “War” but Lost the Law
Calling a civil conflict or a civil war, a war itself, is very misleading. Wars are fought with external enemies. However, civil conflict or a civil war is a fight that takes…
Ban on Chemical Fertilizer a Threat to Food Security
The ban on the import of chemical fertilizer makes sense to some and not to others; however it has far reaching implications for food security. In the pre independence era, the population…
Why States Must Not be Left to Their Own Devices
It is a curious thing to imagine the state of human rights around the world if national leaders were simply left to their own devices. Fortunately, a minimal standard of legal obligations…
Burqa Ban Undermines National Security and Human Rights
The Sri Lankan Cabinet has agreed a ban on wearing burqas and other full face veils in public, which is almost certain to be approved by Parliament. This follows other measures targeting…
Human–Elephant Conflict: Lessons Not Learnt
In 1949, a year after Sri Lanka gained independence, a Committee on the Preservation of Wildlife (Sessional paper XIX – 1949) recommended that when development takes place, elephants living in the proposed…
Freedom of Expression: Where Do We Stand?
theme “Information as a Public Good” On April 30, when the Indian Supreme Court was hearing a case which it had initiated by itself (Suo Motto) to examine issues relating to the…