Vetting our way to trust
AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena, via Al Jazeera The conversation on Transitional Justice in Sri Lanka has hitherto focused almost exclusively on the government’s stated commitments to establish an Office of Missing Persons, a…
Post-War
Victim and Witness Protection and Transitional Justice: The Imperative Need for Urgent Reform
Photograph via International Truth & Justice Project Sri Lanka Sri Lanka has long played host to a culture of impunity, aggression and oppression which have stymied justice and transparency. The judicial system…
What’s in store for 25.1% in 2nd of “Yahapalanaya”?
Photo by Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty Images via Time.com President is reported to have told parliament today in his special address on the Resolution to elect a Constitutional Council, no one should be afraid…
What’s missing out there? People or Politics?
Featured image courtesy The Hindu R, Sampanthan, Leader of TNA and ITAK – www.seithy.com / 2015 December 23 “Thamil Makkal Peravai” (TMP) prompted this essay on Christmas Day. I checked up on…
Who are “war heroes”?
Featured image courtesy DNAIndia We daily read and often hear of “war heroes”, and of our duty from protect them from any charges of misconduct. This is one of the few issues…
Civil Society in the East appeal to UNWGEID for Demilitarisation
Featured image courtesy RightsNow Members of civil society, including families of those disappeared in Batticaloa, Ampara and Trincomalee have come together to issue a statement to the UN Working Group on Enforced and…
Paranagama Report: Presidential Commission of Inquiry Into Complaints of Abductions And Disappearances
Picture courtesy Tamil Guardian The soft copy of the Report from the Presidential Commission of Inquiry Into Complaints of Abductions And Disappearances chaired by Maxwell Paranagama is now available online. “The Darusman Report……
THE GENEVA RESOLUTION AND POLITICS: A NOTE OF CAUTION
Photo courtesy The recent Human Rights Council resolution on Sri Lanka is a remarkable document. Crafted in the immediate aftermath of the devastating OISL Report on Sri Lanka whose central recommendation was…
Revisiting Transitional Justice in Sri Lanka: The Rhetoric, Realities & Opportunities
Photo by Ishara S.KODIKARA/AFP/Getty Images, via The Dish 2015 witnessed two national elections in Sri Lanka- Presidential and Parliamentary, with a mandate given to President Maithripala Sirisena’s government to usher in much needed…
Domestic Inquiry, Militarisation & Victim-Witness Protection
Photo from Balendran Jeyakumari was arrested with her then 12 year old daughter in March 2014 on charges she possessed two stolen mine detectors. Lugged in remand prison for almost a year,…
Human Rights Challenges in Sri Lanka
Thank you for making me part of this celebration. Practically, felicitations are possible for a few, but many deserve felicitation. Felicitation for me means felicitation for many others I have worked with….
Sri Lankan perceptions on life post-war
Six years after the end of war in Sri Lanka, the four main ethnic communities are still divided when it comes to issues related to reconciliation. ‘Sri Lankan perceptions on life post…
Addressing “blocked grief” in Jaffna
Photograph via Steppes Travel Six years after the end of the war the population in the North of Sri Lanka remains passive, ensnared in wartime mentality because they haven’t been able to…
Post-war Sri Lanka: 6 years and still an open wound
On May 19 six years had passed since the war ended. Six years ago former president Mahinda Rajapaksa spoke to the people of Sri Lanka commenting the final battle of the war:…
6 Reasons Why Accountability in Sri Lanka Matters
Sri Lanka’s 26-year civil war ended six years ago amidst allegations of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other serious abuses by both government and rebel forces. In 2011, a U.N. panel…
