COVID Lockdowns: A Look at the Lower Income Tiers
My daily commute to Colombo has been on hold for quite some time since my office adopted work from home as part of our work routine. If it is anything that I…
Latest
Creating a Safer World for the Truth
Every week a journalist is killed. Killing the truth is the world’s safest crime; in eight out of ten cases the killers go free. Since 1992, more than 1,400 journalists have been killed around…
Unleashing Legal Hegemony with One Country, One Law
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has embarked upon yet another journey to marginalise minority communities in post-colonial Sri Lanka. The decision to establish the Presidential Task Force is one that depends upon the overarching…
The Impact of COVID-19 on Access to Credit for SMEs
Image courtesy of Centre for Poverty Analysis Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of the Sri Lankan economy. The sector accounts for nearly 80% of all businesses and contributes to…
Coping with Regional Disparities in Services During a Pandemic
The access to and distribution of public services have a history of uneven and unequal distribution across geographies due to scarce resources, contextual factors and competing interests. This disparity is most visible…
Digital Education During COVID-19
Photo courtesy of Centre for Poverty Analysis Education is often seen as a way out of poverty, increasing opportunities to earn, contribute to society and improve one’s status. Sri Lanka’s education sector,…
One Country, One Law; No Law Enforcement, No Law
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s appointment of Presidential Task Force mandated to implement the One Country, One Law concept, headed by radical monk Galagodaaththe Gnanasara Thera, is a clear indication that another period of…
Scattering The Gathering: Intentional or Unintentional?
In a media release dated October 21, 2021 Dr. Anil Jasinghe, Secretary to the Ministry of Environment, in requesting a National Eco-tourism Plan to promote the tourism industry as well as environmental…
The Impact of COVID-19 on Peace and Poverty in Asia
Photo courtesy of Centre for Poverty Analysis The 2030 agenda for sustainable development encompasses a transformational vision for a world free of poverty and hunger through its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)…
Sri Lanka-Bangladesh Cricket Rivalry: A Breeding Ground for Hate Speech and Islamophobia
Last weekend featured a double header at the T20 Cricket World Cup featuring four South Asian nations. The evening match played under lights was between two countries with a difficult relationship, diplomatically…
Four Stylised Facts about Covid-19 Impacts in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka is reputed for having the highest human development indicators in South Asia as early as the 1970s through notable social spending relative to its per capita income. The end of…
When Impunity Becomes the Norm
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s maiden speech to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September this year contained several ambitious statements. In particular, the following lines in his speech raised the hopes of…
The Two Year Crash Course
“We can only shake our heads at how all of us followed this lunatic…” A German general (quoted in Volker Ullrich’s Hitler – Downfall – 1939-45) The first seeds of America’s Afghan…
Beware: The Third Readymade Constitution is Coming Soon
Professor G.L. Peiris has announced that the drafting process of the Constitution is over and that the text is ready. He said that it was to be presented to the Parliament in…
Layla Gonaduwa: Exploring Memory, Home and Migration Through Art
For three months Layla Gonaduwa, a self taught, interdisciplinary artist, travelled around Sri Lanka to explore the concept of memory, home and migration. She explored symbiotic and discordant relationships between within communities…
