The Anatomy of a Debasement
Let’s begin with a story. Once upon a time, the prime minister of an island nation was plagued by an outbreak of labour unrest. He summoned the police chief and ordered him…
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MMDA Reform Is About Women’s and Girls’ Lives Not Political Games
Following the parliamentary debates on the Women’s Ministry budget allocation commencing March 8, fears are being raised within Muslim communities that reform of the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act (MMDA) is an…
Long Way to Go on Rights for All
In an oral update session on progress in Reconciliation and Accountability in Sri Lanka Maarit Kohonen Sheriff, Director of the Global Operations Division in the Office of the UN High Commissioner for…
Sleeping With The Enemy
Sneha About ten years ago, I was staying with a university friend and her family. During my stay, I noticed the way my friend’s husband spoke to her: it was often belittling…
Protecting Women in a Patriarchal Society
The statistics speak for themselves. Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) as well as child abuse have reached alarming proportions throughout the country; several cases are reported daily in the media. One…
Holding the Government Accountable for its Election Promises
During their campaigns for the presidential and parliamentary elections, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and his National People’s Power (NPP) party made several promises to voters on a wide range of issues including…
The Re-gathering
“ In 2009, Mahinda Rajapaksa conquered Sri Lanka. In 2010, he set out to conquer the world with an address to the Oxford Union. Although the visit was a private one, a…
Sri Lanka’s Online Safety Act: A Year in Review and Framework for Reform
A year ago, Sri Lanka hurriedly passed legislation that fundamentally undermined human rights in ways unprecedented in the country’s history. The Online Safety Act (OSA), rammed through parliament without meaningful consultation, represents…
Chasing the Elusive Rainbow
news click What does a second Donald Trump presidency really mean, especially for women and minority rights not only in the US but also globally? (Un)fortunately, we have a considerable number of…
Waiting for Frodo
J.R.R. Tolkien’s One Ring was an instrument of power and suppression, forged to subjugate the free people of Middle Earth. Yet, the first word-picture of the Ring begins by emphasising its seeming…
It’s the Party, Stupid: Sri Lanka’s Political Turnaround – Part 2
Sri Lanka has a tradition of strong and independent civil society organisations and of professional (and organisational) autonomy within many branches of the state apparatus. By the turn of the century, it…
It’s the Party, Stupid: Sri Lanka’s Political Turnaround – Part 1
It is not quite a miracle. But it is certainly a very impressive turnaround. From around 1970 until 2021, Sri Lanka seemed to be on an irreversible track toward steadily worsening governance:…
Beyond Electoral Victory: The President’s Political Tasks Ahead
Sri Lanka enters year 2025 with a new leader and a new political regime. The landslide victory the National Peoples Power (NPP) obtained in the general elections demonstrated the extent of mass…
Steering Sri Lanka Away from Kakistocracy
By January 2022 Sri Lanka was well on its way to becoming a failed state. Bankrupt, riddled with corruption from top to bottom and at the mercy of evil leaders, the country…
Lessons Learnt from Sri Lanka’s Worst Natural Disaster
The tsunami that struck Sri Lanka 20 years ago on December 26, 2004 was the most destructive natural disaster in living memory. It claimed over 39,000 lives and destroyed thousands of houses…
