Celebrating heroes from everyday life Civil power and the journey from birth to death

Let’s hope Sri Lanka doesn’t become a zombie land!

The other day this writer saw a middle-aged individual dozing off near Borella Junction. While it was extremely worrying to see a drugged individual during an evening hour, one thing certainly became clear; that the drug menace is fast going out of control. The rate at which ICE and other dangerous drugs are being distributed is evident with the major drug busts happening around the country.

Alumex: Four Decades of Aluminium Excellence, Innovation and Sustainability

For nearly 40 years, Alumex PLC has stood as a cornerstone of Sri Lanka’s aluminium industry. Established in 1988, the company began as a modest joint venture at a time when aluminium extrusion was still a developing sector in the country. In 2006,

Between Populist Rhetoric & Neo-liberal Reality Assessing the NPP’s First Year in Power

Every society has elites who wield the most power, wealth and influence, but their dominance isn’t permanent.

The shame of Lanka--elders hopelessly roaming our streets

In our country, we see them here, we see then there, we see them nearly everywhere -- old people at street corners, bus stops, hanging around eating houses and at every traffic light in the city. Begging for money to buy a morsel of food. Somebody’s mother or father Destitute, homeless, with nowhere to go.

Reflection on the NPP’s past year

On September 21, the incumbent government completes one year in power. Unlike former regimes, the incumbent government has taken certain initiatives falling in line with its campaign theme of catching rogues and bringing them to justice.

Youth rebellions and regime change has the Aragalaya been contagious?

The question arises whether the youth, especially the Gen Z, are taking over the political fate of countries, particularly those in South Asia with the recent regime changes and efforts to that effect in countries like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Nepal.

Shadow of JRJ hovers over promises and realities of governance

One cannot help but admire Comrade Tilvin Silva, the General Secretary of the JVP and a founding father of the National People’s Power (NPP). He has a knack of being truthful, a very admirable but rare trait among politicians in our country.

Kudos to the judiciary

A three-judge bench of the High Court today sentenced Niraj Roshan, alias ‘Ali Roshan’ to 15 years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs. 20.6 million after finding him guilty of unlawfully keeping five elephants without valid permits.

Establish an Advertising Authority in Sri Lanka

The recent surge in TV adverts and language that offends viewers has raised concerns about the need for a regulatory body to address these issues. Unlike countries such as the UK, which has the UK Advertising Authority, and India, with its Broadcasting Commission, Sri Lanka lacks a formal mechanism for viewers to lodge complaints about objectionable content. Current Regulatory Framework in Sri Lanka In Sri Lanka, advertising practices are oversee

Gig-for-Gaza roars louder than Doha debacle

The buildup to Monday’s emergency summit of Arab and Muslim leaders in the Qatari capital, Doha, signalled a potential turning point in Arab-Israeli relations-or a tough retaliation against Israel for bombing Qatar on September 9. But in the end, the outcome was just another round of condemnations and a lengthy communiqué that Israel,

Tax for poverty alleviation or elevation

Sri Lanka, as a country now in the midst of an IMF (International Monetary Fund) programme, has largely achieved macroeconomic stability. The latest World Bank report titled “Sri Lanka Public Finance Review: Towards a Balanced Fiscal Adjustment,” acknowledged it. The revenue adjustment since 2022 has been significant, with a near 5-percentage-point increase in tax-to-GDP to 12.3 percent in 2024. This was driven by sharp increases in tax rates

NPP and hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil

Since President Dissanayaka was elected executive president of our country and inherited the international debt the country is facing, both he and his political party, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), have become very circumspect and cautious regarding any comment on Israel and its genocidal war in Palestine.

Shaping the living wage agenda:Asia-Pacific’s call to action

Asia and the Pacific is home to the world’s largest workforce. In recent years, the region has demonstrated remarkable resilience, with real wages (inflation-adjusted pay) continuing to rise even as they declined in many other parts of the world.

Ambitious plans and sobering realities: The World Will Not Wait for Sri Lanka to Reform

In a 1996 speech to the Singapore Press Club, Lee Kuan Yew addressed the challenge of ensuring Singapore’s survival beyond his leadership and laid out the core principle of its success. He explained that Singapore prospered by “creating first-world conditions in a third-world region” and becoming “a base camp from which entrepreneurs forayed into the less developed areas around it”.

Political Revenge or Election Pledge?

With widespread frustration about perceived excesses in political perks, especially in a time of economic strain a main topic pledged in the current Government’s manifesto ‘A Thriving Nation, A Beautiful Life’ is to abolish special privileges given to retired presidents and their families. In Hindsight, 6.8 million people voted for it and obviously the Government had to walk the talk.

When Fear Marches Through London

That was the message flooding WhatsApp groups in South Asian communities across London last week.

A Strategic Imperative: Restoring the Medical Backbone of the Sri Lanka Army

This article provides a critical assessment of the profound challenges facing the Sri Lanka Army’s premier medical facility, the Narahenpita Military Hospital. For sixteen years since the conclusion of the civil conflict, this institution has served as the vital medical hub for thousands of serving and retired service members, upholding a national commitment to those who sacrificed for the country.

Social media can make or break governments

Irrespective of the merits or demerits of the possible fallouts of regime change in Nepal last week following mass protests and violence, it provides a window of opportunity for every country, especially in the global south, to reinitiate the discourse on regulation of social media platforms.

Stop Milking Consumers Through Hidden Food Delivery Fees

Food delivery apps have become a lifeline for busy, middle-class families. But the final bill is often far higher than the menu price we first see. On top of delivery charges—which we accept—customers are hit with a barrage of extras: small order fees, handling fees, and even so-called high order fees. Why a handling fee? Isn’t handling part of the job already built into the cost? And why punish consumers during “rush hours” when more orders mean

The NPP’s Education Reforms: Missed Opportunity?

Education occupies a special place in the minds of the public in Sri Lanka, thanks to the free education system which benefits the people from all walks of life. No other singular reform agenda evokes such animated interest and vociferous debate as the subject of education.

Violence in the Buddha’s land of birth How Kathmandu and Colombo redefined politics

The uprisings in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka reveal a generational impatience with deep-rooted elites who treat the state as personal property. Across South Asia, young people—digitally savvy, economically pressured, and politically aware—have found common cause in demanding accountability from leaders they view as corrupt and unresponsive. The Nepal protests described above, which began with a social-media ban and ended in the resignation o

Muslim Congress Leader M.H.M. Ashraff and the course of Muslim politics

Mohammad Hussein Muhammad Ashraff, known to all M.H.M. Ashraff was one of the brightest stars to shine in the Sri Lankan political firmament.

Long history of failures Sri Lanka’s Lost Decades and Flawed World Bank Projects

Last week, the World Bank released two documents on Sri Lanka: A report titled, ‘Sri Lanka Public Finance Review’ addressing Sri Lanka’s painful fiscal adjustment over the last few years, and an appraisal document for a USD 100 million loan for its new ‘Integrated Rurban Development and Climate Resilience Project’.

A politically momentous month in Lanka

The month of September has been momentous in our country’s history. Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike was shot on September 25, 1959, and died from his wounds the following day, September 26. On September 22, 2024, President AKD Dissanayaka was elected Executive President of Lanka.

No problem, can retire back to Madamulana

I read a news item in your newspaper that a Member of Parliament and a Rajapakse loyalist, the son of an unsavoury character, had said that there was no issue regarding former president Mahinda Rajapakse’s housing as he can come to Medamulana.

NPP’s balancing act in human rights issues

The National People’s Power (NPP) government has rejected the decade old recommendation by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk to establish an international mechanism for accountability for human rights violations committed during the war between the armed forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Low quality products cost us our time, money and lives

Reports say that the terrible bus accident at Ella which claimed so many lives is the result of a brake failure. The conductor was heard yelling ‘no brakes, lie down’ just before the bus went off the road.

Trouble in Bangladesh, Nepal’s Gen Z and lessons for Lanka

Since 2022, three South Asian nations –Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal have seen their governments overthrown by street protests.

Qatar under attack: Is US still a reliable ally?

“With friends like these, who needs enemies?” Whoever first uttered those words, the idiom has gained more traction in politics than in any other field.