Stability or Protest, That is the Question
One striking issue is currently polarising society. Should the country forget about demanding system change and accept the status quo for now to get the economy back on track? The argument is…
One striking issue is currently polarising society. Should the country forget about demanding system change and accept the status quo for now to get the economy back on track? The argument is…
Brief Many journalists have been killed and subjected to enforced disappearances in Sri Lanka, with the Jayewardene-Premadasa led UNP governments of 1977 to 1994 and Rajapaksa led UPFA government of 2006 to…
Although Sri Lanka has achieved much progress in education, health and most social indicators, the representation of women at every level of governance remains abysmally low. Since the country’s transition to democracy…
A few months ago, the area surrounding the Presidential Secretariat was home to an unprecedented resistance. The occupation at Gotagogama marked 124 days of nonviolent struggle and vibrant community. The struggle area…
It was supposed to be a temporary law to fight the perceived threat of a militant uprising but it has remained for over 40 years, enduring even after the enemy has been…
After temporarily living in Maldives, Singapore and Thailand, the previous President Gotabaya Rajapaksa arrived back in his homeland in early September. Any Sri Lankan citizen, including a president who abandoned his post,…
Since 1992 at least 1,400 journalists have been killed for bringing reliable information to the public. These murders, and the subsequent impunity, are the ultimate consequence of a hostile environment for press…
“How many more years should we come to Geneva?” Sandya Ekneligoda, wife of disappeared journalist, at “informal” consultation on UNHRC resolution on Sri Lanka, in Geneva, 16th Sept. 2022 Among the many international…
As the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) prepares to meet, the regime’s multiple failures to protect and respect Sri Lankans are under local and international scrutiny. A hard-hitting report from the…
The rule of law is a complex and critical principle of governance. The late Thomas Bingham, a Supreme Court Judge in the United Kingdom, wrote a prominent book on the rule of…
After a number of protestors were arrested in Colombo, three student activists have been detained under the notorious Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) despite expressions of concern from the international community. Amid…
It seems like a long time ago but the reality is that it’s been just 150 days since the urban middle class and their semi-urban cousins stepped out of their comfort zone…
From all parts of the country, there are reports of arrests of people who participated in the protests that erupted against the hardships caused by the economic meltdown. For months people made…
Despite widespread condemnation of the arrests, intimidation and harassment of peaceful protesters by the state, activists and journalists continued to be targeted for reprisals for their part in the aragalaya. The repressive…
A peaceful mass uprising on July 9 has brought about the end of a political era that started with the promulgation of the 1978 constitution of Sri Lanka, a constitution that completely…