How to Handle the Omicron Variant
The latest Omicron variant is currently a global concern. Emergence of new variants is partly due to the global vaccine inequity which has allowed the virus to infect many unvaccinated populations and…
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Combatting Corruption is Everybody’s Fight
The sad story of corruption in Sri Lanka stretches far back and, by all accounts, will be stretching far into the future as well. On the 2020 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) compiled…
Some Observations on the Current Situation in Sri Lanka
I am currently living in the UK, which has its advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is one can keep a little distance from the dynamics of current events. This helps to get…
The Perpetual Marginalization of People with Disabilities
Article 12 (1) of the Constitution of Sri Lanka 1978 recognizes that people are entitled to equal protection of the law. Therefore, the state is under an obligation to ensure through law…
The Television President: Visuals and Symbols of Two Years of Gotabaya Rajapaksa
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa marked the completion of his second year in office much like how he started his term in November 2019, playing one of his greatest hits for the Sinhala Buddhist…
COVID-19 and Structural Inequalities Impede AIDS Battle
World AIDS Day is an annual event commemorated worldwide since 1988 on December 1. It is an opportunity to refocus and reinforce the global efforts to prevent new HIV infections, increase HIV…
How News Headlines Make or Break the Public Mind
The front page main headline is the focal point of a newspaper that grabs the attention of news consumers. A main headline goes beyond merely describing the facts of a news story…
The Next Three Years
In Terry Pratchett’s Small Gods, a god gets turned into a tortoise. Omnia is great god Om’s fief. Everyone worships him there, out of habit or in fear of his human…
Is There a Credible Political Alternative for Sri Lanka?
Why do Sri Lankan voters elect and re-elect corrupt and discredited politicians? This topic has been much talked about and commented on in newspapers and social media ever since Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in…
Public Awareness Key to Ending Gender Based Violence
On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women I want to take a look at what progress has been made in raising our awareness as a community about the…
The Scourge of Intimate Partner Violence
Mala is a survivor of intimate partner violence. She kept it a secret until her husband passed away. After 25 years of daily abuse, she finally found the strength and courage to…
The Constitutional Roots of the Problem of Disappearances
There is a bagful of tricks that Sri Lankan governments have been using when it comes to the issue of revealing the truth and providing justice to the families of the disappeared.…
Boys Cry Too
Boys are often under represented or even ignored in the fight against child sexual exploitation due to the stereotyping of gender traits with males being considered strong and invulnerable and less likely…
Smashing Fertilizer Myths
About a decade ago, a statement by a medical doctor in the United States made overnight headlines. He was a popular television personality too. When he learned about the presence of arsenic…
PTA ++: Learning the Wrong International Lessons
In the name of counter-terrorism countries enact repressive laws that restrict human rights. They claim these laws will make us safer. Yet, contrary to claims of increasing national security, the tendency of…
