Looking for the Human factor in this “Rainbow Revolution”
Two things trouble and pain me. The Mullivaikkal “remembrance” on 18 May, of the dead and missing people due to war, whose families are still agitating to know the “truth” and want…
Sri Lanka
Enforced disappearances in Sri Lanka: Legacy and ongoing challenges
Enforced disappearance of persons remains one of the widely known human rights violations in Sri Lanka. The machinery that had been set up during the past to perpetrate such incidents appears to…
Koothu to Kolam: An Island in Sound
The Galle Music Festival was a true celebration of the diversity between and within cultures of Sri Lanka. The many facets of the Sinhala and Tamil communities, based on their geographical locations…
Diaspora Participation in the Transitional Justice Process
Featured image courtesy Tamil Guardian ‘I gave my statement not only for what I hoped to achieve, but on behalf of the hundreds of people at home who could not raise these…
Demystifying Debt
Revisiting ties with China, a bailout deal from the IMF, and increases in VAT have been making headlines recently. What does this all mean from an economic standpoint, and is Sri Lanka…
Towards True Freedom of Expression
Former editor in chief of the Nation in Thailand, Kavi Chongkittavorn received an unexpected scoop when visiting Sri Lanka in the 1990s. The source – Minister of Foreign Affairs Lakshman Kadirgamar, who…
Sri Lanka: Where Free Market Wouldn’t Sell Reform & Reconciliation
Featured image courtesy Asianews The case for serious reform necessary to return to a decent, civilised life for all in Sri Lanka has not been seriously argued in political forums all these…
Our Shared Truth
There is a place, unassuming and quiet on the pristine Southern coast; white sand fringed by blue sea under the shade of an unbroken line of coconut palm trees. Weligama, ‘sandy town’.…
Public Service Failure: Episode 2
Featured image courtesy theecologist.org The Ceylon Electricity Board. I can imagine the range of emotions the mere mention of this public institution will inspire in a number of you. Particularly those of…
Will Sri Lanka Wake Up To The Realities of The ‘Panama Papers’ Exposure?
Featured image courtesy AFP/GETTY – Rodrigo Arangua On April 3, 2016, , Germany’s largest daily newspaper leaked 11.5 million files from the database of Mossack Fonseca, a law firm headquartered in Panama City, Panama.…
Contending with Rejection and Exclusion: Take Two on the Kuliyapitiya Debacle
Featured image courtesy BBC I preface this piece by acknowledging my own discomfort as an educator in addressing sticky issues of equity and justice in education. I was motivated to write this piece…
The Other Side
A glimpse of the streets we would have called home, I’m laughing in the park, climbing the coconut trees, Cycling through the dusty lanes, playing at the local spots. It’s a strange…
More Thoughts on Current Orthodoxies
Featured image courtesy president.gov.lk I very much like Sunil Bastian’s critical perspective on the current Sri Lankan policy agenda “Some Thoughts on Current Orthodoxies,” dated 14 March. Let me support his case,…
Voiceless: Stories of the Displaced
On Friday, posted a map to the displaced and marginalised, marking the International for the Right to Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims, which falls on…
The Right To Truth: Mapping The Displaced
The right to truth is often linked to healing in the wake of trauma. The International Centre for Transitional Justice says “truth can assist in the healing process after traumatic events; restore…
