Political settlement or regime change!
Photo by AFP, via SBS (Not exactly Francis Thompson) This essay is premised on an ill-omened reading of the Geneva tea-leaves. What be this ominous message I see floating in the cup?…
Search Results for: Corridors of Power
Toy Pistol Local Governance in Hambantota
Image courtesy Nidahasa The country woke up a few days ago to news that a group of opposition UNP MPs on a fact finding visit to the new airport and port in…
Defending non-implementation of the LLRC in Geneva
Image courtesy Sri Lanka Brief The Rajapakse Administration has deployed a key architect of its post war policy towards minorities and war affected communities in Presidential Secretary Lalith Weeratunga, through his position…
Meetings across acrylic, canvas and dance: India-Sri Lanka Artists Week
I spent some time with 12 visual artists and 1 dancer, from Sri Lanka and India, at the Taj Samudra Hotel in Colombo today, who are part of an interesting and pioneering…
Dead men do tell tales
Photo courtesy Sri Lanka Guardian Watching the current commentary on the mass grave in Matale “There are allegations that the bodies are those of victims of a small pox outbreak from a…
Echoes of Cuba
Photo by Kuni Takahashi/Bloomberg, via Bloomberg I walk the hills rising from an azure blue Caribbean sea, and try to envision the history that I have been told, a history of an island,…
Towards a Common Ground of Understanding: A response to “Aachcharya”
Photo credit Sri Lanka Guardian Whether it be fleshing out Sangakkara’s “modern, pluralist worldview of unity in diversity”, the intersection of identity and race relations, the identity crises facing young generations of mixed…
Colgate, Signal, smiles and politics: From Clinton to Chandrika and Queen Mother’s rotten teeth
Chandrika’s winning smile, Mahinda’s wide grin and Clinton’s leer at Monica’s underwear speak volumes than their political agenda. Then who would listen to an ageing toothless cur of a politician or the…
Fear Psychosis, State of our Nation, Terrorism and Sri Lanka, our Motherland
Double standards as it may seem Lasantha’s murder was a rude awakening for many, including me. Why I call it a double standard is that many lives were previously lost and I…
Mobile Phones in Sri Lanka: Everyman’s new trousers?
One day a few years ago, I found my uncle in a really bad mood. Enjoying his retirement after long years as a senior civil servant, he was highly agitated about what…
About
is a citizens journalism website based in Sri Lanka. The site uses a range of genres and media to highlight alternative perspectives on governance, human rights, the arts and literature, peace-building and…
The politics of hate and harm
Most readers in Colombo would have seen the posters of the National Movement Against Terrorism (NMAT) calling for the peace, media and leftist ‘Tigers’ to be identified and destroyed. This columnist was…
Mannar Island: A Paradise At the Crossroads
Mannar Island transcends the realm of a mere tourist destination. It’s a living tapestry woven with threads of breathtaking natural beauty, a profound historical heritage and a vibrant cultural diversity that has…
Fighting the Extinction of Sri Lanka’s Elephants
December’s deaths caused by illegal electric fences of three tuskers, beloved characters in their territories, marked the 449th elephant death of 2023, bringing the estimated death toll to the highest ever recorded…
Saving Forests with Corporate and Public Responsibility
We know this and we know that despite all of their expressed concerns and intentions that the policymakers have little thought of doing much to reverse this trend. Rather than bemoan this…
