‘Siblings … end up quarreling’: Split or Drama?

Dishonest politicians abused the 1978 Constitution in rampaging and ransacking a nation: On July 8, 2019, we wrote on these columns an article Sub titled, “Even two siblings would....

Undemocratic political culture paved way to the present disaster

As month long mass protests are continuing all over the country against government’s failure to provide some of the most essentials such as fuel, cooking gas, fertiliser, and medicine and people are forced....

Financial crisis, street demos and political chaos - EDITORIAL

Sri Lanka’s multiple crises caused by a lack of foreign reserves is at the heart of the country’s huge foreign debt and the inability to purchase the imported goods that Lankans rely on, including...

State Power, Working People and the Crisis

Great economic crises lead to tremendous political changes. At the heart of such changes is the state and the use of its power. The public anger mounting over the last two years and culminating....

Premadasa’s vision could lift Sri Lanka’s struggling economy

It is with great pride that I pen this article on the on the 29th death anniversary of former President Ranasinghe Premadasa who was the father of the 200 garment factories programme. The programme led to major industrial development spread throughout the country creating employment and exports which brought in the valuable foreign exchange to the country.

A labour leader who even the British feared

The present uprising against the government brings to memory an incident which sent shivers through the colonial rulers ninety three years ago; the aftermath of the tramway strike in 1929.

Drastic changes in economic, political and legal policies are needed

Sri Lanka is negotiating with the IMF for help to overcome the present forex crisis. But the IMF’s prescriptions could be challenging.

Fearless journalists need to support public revolution

Famous American newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst has said that news is something that someone wants suppressed.

Sri Lanka Crisis: Professionals create an action plan

‘Direction Sri Lanka - Independent Professional for the Nation’- a collective of professionals consisting largely of legal and medical practitioners held a press conference on April 20. At the press conference....

Mr. Prime Minister, the mandate is no longer valid

In the face of an unprecedented massive economic and political crisis and a mounting public outcry demanding the ouster of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his government, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa....

Promises by power-hungry lawmakers and the law - EDITORIAL

Lawmakers are now airing their views about punishing wrongdoers if and when they come to power. The last person to make a statement in this regard is Field Marshall and former Army Commander....

Easter Sunday attacks: Find the mystery behind the history

Since terrorism is an international blight that needs to be rooted out, Colombo’s Archbishop Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith is right in his efforts to internationalise the process to obtain justice for the victims...

“Govt’s IMF programme a day late and a dollar short” - Dr. Harsha de Silva

Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Dr. Harsha de Silva who is vocal about economic issues takes questions in an interview with the Daily Mirror on the present....

A season of (il)legitimacies

Politics is about claims and counter-claims. It is about profit-seeking through exaggeration and pooh-poohing. It is also about wild extrapolation of conclusions wrought in echo-chambers. It is as much about deception as it is about self-deception. Perhaps an example would illustrate the point.

Onus with Govt. to resolve political impasse

More than 6.9 million people voted for the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the November 16,

Withdrawal of bribery cases against politicians and their allies raises eyebrows

Startling accusations have come to the fore alleging that the two Commission members of the Commission to Investigate Allegations.....

Ukraine and Palestine; A tale of two states - EDITORIAL

The Russia-Ukraine conflict which had been on the boil since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, exploded into a full-fledged military....

Who will take the first step to break the stalemate ?

The protesters who are occupying the Galle Face, now for the third week are resilient and persistent. There are no two words....

’’The masses and my voters are with me. They will vote for me again at the next elections. I am confident of winning. These protestors were always against me’’ - MR

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa is presently facing one of his toughest challenges in his political career with certain sections of the population calling on him to step down with the present crises.

Farmers - the forgotten lot

Remember the countrywide protests by the farmers after their crops were destroyed due to lack of chemical fertilizer and the other agrochemicals? As if the allegation by the then Agriculture Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage that the farm

Why Rajapaksas are refusing to resign

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has dismissed calls for his resignation, as has his brother, Gotabaya, the president. In an interview with a private radio station, he pooh-poohed calls for an interim government, and insisted that “If there is

Our Struggle is real! Why the ‘Aragalaya’ is only just a beginning?

In the aftermath of violence: A chance for political change - EDITORIAL

Over the past six months Lanka has been buffeted by the winds of political-economic turmoil and a breakdown in governance.In the capital city crowds of protesters have occupied the Galle Face.....

Confessed and Apologized: now Resign!

Integrity, intelligence, capability, conscientiousness, and experience should take precedence over party loyalty in appointing an interim administration. The President has confessed/apologized....

Professionals urge forces to handle protesters with care

In a letter to Sri Lanka’s Armed Forces on April 21, Direction Sri Lanka, a group of independent professions requested the Armed Forces to act with care, understanding and exercise....

Is the “House of Rajapaksa” Falling Down?

When Basil Rohana Rajapaksa was sworn in as Finance Minister by his brother President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in July 2021, the appointment captured the attention of the world’s influential media.

Desperation of an Executive President

The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) government is no longer a strong government, despite it commanding a simple majority in Parliament. One cannot give an assurance of even its simple majority which is 113 seats in the House being intact if a secret ballot was taken over any issue.

Sinharaja sans a buffer zone even 18 years after Cabinet decision

Nearly eighteen years have passed since the cabinet took a decision to annexe half a kilometre buffer zone to Sri Lanka’s last primary tropical forest, Sinharaja. On July 22, 2004, the then cabinet approved to obtain a recommendation to connect a buffer zone for Sinharaja. Still consecutive governments have opted to turn a blind eye to this long-overdue project despite demands by environmentalists.

Cleaning the system and thoughts of Zedong - EDITORIAL

A protest in Rambukkana on April 19 brought death to a 41 year-old father sending a strong message to protesters, the police and the government to maintain nonviolence throughout this difficult time....

People demand a genuine system change

It is seven days into the culturally and astrologically significant National New Year, celebrated mainly by Sinhala Buddhists and Tamil Hindus and four days after Easter Sunday celebrated by Christians in Sri Lanka on the eve of the third anniversary of the April 21, 2019 massacre, which killed 269 devotees and hotel guests and injured nearly 500.