Forecast for 2017: Gomin Dayasri
This is the eighth in a series of video interviews forecasting what 2017 will have in store across different sectors. Attorney-at-law, Gomin Dayasri speaks about developments in the legal sector over the…
Politics and Governance
Writing to Reconcile: A personal journey
Image from Write to Reconcile Last fall, in Toronto, I went to see a play that was written by one of the writers in this anthology, Sindhuri Nandakumar. The play was called…
Survivalist and Irrepressible: The Two Faces of the Sri Lankan Media
Introduction The past decade produced two critical moments of transition in Sri Lanka. On 19 May 2009, a 30-year war came to a brutal end with the defeat of the Liberation Tigers…
Wijedasa Rajapaksa: Unfit for the job of Justice and Buddha Sasana Minister
Justice and Buddha Sasana Minister Wijedasa Rajapaksa is seen as a blatant liar by the Muslim community. He has become Yahapalanaya’s unofficial patron of Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) and its controversial leader…
Refugee Jesus: Christmas & Refugees in Sri Lanka
Photo by Jessica Sallabank, from IRIN Jesus was born as a refugee child. When Mary, the pregnant mother on the move couldn’t find a place to give birth, it was poor shepherds…
Groundviews’ Top 10 Most Read Articles in 2016
Two years into a Maithripala Sirisena presidency, Sri Lankan polity and society are still grappling with dealing with the past, all the while buffeted by new and equally worrying issues. This is…
Human Rights Day, Transitional Justice and the Reform Agenda in Sri Lanka: What Next?
10th December marks international human rights day. While we should respect, promote and protect human rights regardless of a special day, 10th December ideally should be when we revisit and reflect on…
Yahapalanaya in Sri Lanka: Remains of the Day
(’good governance’) regime. President Sirisena is doing it with a little loyalty to the constituencies that enabled him to win the presidential election in January 2015. He has been going after the…
Ten Years: On populism and counterfeit democracy
Ten years surviving a tempestuous period of contemporary Sri Lankan political, economic and social change, as an English language electronic platform introducing the most modern forms of communication is surely an accomplishment…
Budget 2017: The good, bad and ugly
Mixed feelings prevail in the wake of Budget 2017 being presented in Parliament. Overall, the Budget was fairly holistic in coverage, being broadly linked to Prime Minister Wickremesinghe’s statements to Parliament earlier…
Regaining Paradise with Donald Trump
Donald Trump’s victory is a beacon of hope to extremists of every stripe, from the Ku Klux Klan to Marine Le Pen, from Islamic extremists and Hindu nationalists to our very own…
Guided Tour: ‘Corridors of Power’ at the WINGS Festival of Arts
Led by the input of Asanga Welikala and in collaboration with Channa Daswatta, ‘Corridors of Power’ through architectural drawings and models, interrogates key moments in Sri Lanka’s constitutional evolution since 1972. The…
Can art transform conflict?
Does art have a role in reconciliation? Does it help in healing trauma? Can the creative power of arts be used as a catalyst for action – especially among those who have…
Keeping the Lunatic Fringe in the Fringe
Photo courtesy July 2016 could have become a very small-scale reproduction of July 1983, attacks and counterattacks, panicky actions and fear-filled reactions, hysteria, mayhem and some murder. It didn’t because this July…
Flip-flopping on accountability: A timeline
Featured image courtesy The Wire/Ishara K The topic of international involvement in Sri Lanka’s accountability process, specifically the participation of foreign judges, is controversial and hotly contested. The UNHRC resolution, co-sponsored by…
