Presidency: All the Mahinda’s men

Discontent is a word weak in intensity to describe a Government fast losing support it held in 2015. The climate is not conducive for holding any election - fear of exposing an eroding vote base for the Government. 

Act swift for a greener and cleaner tomorrow!

The need for feasible environmental friendly approaches for development projects and policy planning has been felt as vital elements, especially in the facet of addressing issues related to natural disasters including garbage management in Sri Lanka. Furthermore, preserving the biodiversity of ecosystems has today become quite a challenge as illegal constructions including development projects lacking a proper EIA report are currently on the ri

WILL THE DEMONS REAWAKEN IN PARADISE?

Last week I saw the most honest, courageous and important piece of art --and certainly movie-- on Sri Lanka done by a Sri Lankan. Directed by Jude Ratnam, it is called “Demons in Paradise” and has already been screened at Cannes. It is about us, all of us. “Demons in Paradise” is a road movie, but it is unlike most road movies. 

A costly blooper

Many thought the suave and sophisticated Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, had easy way up the political ladder being the son of a two time prime minister.

Trump’s War With Media: Lessons for Sri Lanka - EDITORIAL

The blazing battle between United States President Donald Trump and the US media provides good headline lessons for Sri Lanka’s media....

Anguish expressed as Modi softens attitude towards cow vigilantes

Following adverse national and international media coverage of lynching of Muslims for eating beef or selling cattle for slaughter, India’s Prime Minister....

Victims of Crime and Witnesses Protection Act yet to benefit public

Though the Assistance to and Protection of Victims of Crime and Witnesses Act, No. 4 of 2015 was implemented last year, its performance....

In Conversation with South African Judge Dikgang Moseneke: Mandela’s comrade recalls ‘life’ on the

Dikgang Moseneke was the former Deputy Chief Justice of South Africa. He was an unswerving judge who served in the Constitutional.....

Mangala is right: Why Sri Lanka needs to relax liquor laws?

Mangala Samaraweera, the new finance minister wants to open liquor shops on Poya Days. In an opinion poll in the Daily Mirror website....

Invisible factors block pharmaceutical imports from Bangladesh - High Commissioner

Ahead of President Maithripala Sirisena’s visit to Bangladesh, Bangladeshi High Commissioner M. Riyaz Hamidullah, in an interview.....

Govt. must assure democratic space and freedom

Freedom of expression, right to a religion and attacks on minority religions have been in discussion within the last couple of days. It has raised....

SAITM and the Privatisation Push

The protests calling to close SAITM and their violent repression raise several questions. Is the Government’s insistence on....

Uma Oya project, a catch-22 situation - EDITORIAL

We Sri Lankans appear to be a bunch of lotus eaters - living dreamy lives and indifferent to important issues which challenge us...

Ananthy: First NPC woman Minister

45-year-old Ananthy Sasitharan made history when she was sworn in before Northern Province Governor Reginald Cooray in Jaffna as Northern Provincial Minister of Women’s Affairs, 

UN peacekeeping gets tougher

The United Nations is often scapegoat for the falling short of its peacekeeping troops and deployments. Why are they not in Syria or Yemen, Libya or along the Palestinian/Israeli border? 

MSME Day: first responders to societal needs

In this era of microchips and digital technology, it is significant that the United Nations for the first time last Tuesday June 27, marked Micro- Small and Medium Sized Enterprises Day. This was because the UN says enterprises which generally employ fewer than 250 people, are the backbone of most economies worldwide and play a key role in developing countries.

Without cowing to Trump, India needs to build Asian unity

Behind the bear hug, one wonders, whether there were moves to outfox each other. By the looks of it, the awkward embrace between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and United States President Donald Trump underlined India’s endorsement of US hegemony and its willingness to be part of the US hegemonic designs, especially in Asia......

Finding the missing links Between the missing persons and the culprits

While the Parliament unanimously passed an Amendment to the Office of the Missing Persons (OMP) Act last week, relatives of the Tamil people gone missing during the war between the security forces and the LTTE crossed the 120th day of their sit-in protest in Kilinochchi......

Multiple fruits of home gardens

About 50 years ago, the then Finance Minister Dr. N.M. Perera proposed that Sri Lanka should grow its own nutritious food and the people should cultivate their own home gardens instead of showing a preference for imported food....

Sri Lanka out of viable political options Prof. Siri Hettige

Professor Siri Hettige secured his Ph.D. in Social Anthropology from Monash University, Australia in 1980. He functioned as the Head of the Department of Sociology at the University of Colombo for nearly ten years, since 1987. After the establishment of the current government in 2015, he was appointed as the Chairman of the National Police Commission, but he tendered his resignation in January, 2017. In an interview with the Daily Mirror, Profess

The double R Reconciliation and Rhetoric

“Today, words like ‘progress’ and ‘development’ have become interchangeable with economic ‘reforms’, ‘deregulation’ and ‘privatisation.........

Recommendations for disaster management

Sri Lanka has had several disasters in the past, but yet to see a proper contingency plan. As a result many human lives are lost and severe damages caused to private and government properties.  

Attitudes of the educated affect economy of country

Education was taken over by the State by privatization of schools in the name of free education, a political decision, considered a good move to make free education available to all citizens. 

Laws needed to regulate NGOs:

In the wake of controversy involving human rights lawyer Lakshan Dias and allegations of extremism, Justice and Buddha Sasana Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe spoke to Daily Mirror responding to  allegations against him. Excerpts of the interview :  

Legitimacy of the coercive power

Protests are part and parcel of a healthy democracy. Another crucial element of a functioning democracy is the Rule of Law which includes legal protections, enforcement where necessary and recourse to the courts in the event of perceived infringement of rights. So we have the executive, legislative and judicial arms of the state to attend to these things. Where there is failure, therefore, we must first and foremost look to the faults of the sy

SAITM controversy stuck in a quagmire

The South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM) or the Malabe private medical college issue seems to have reached an impasse. The government and the Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA), the main contenders are intransigent and sticking to their respective stances on this matter. The GMOA is demanding the closure of the private medical college, while the government is rigidly opposed to such a demand. 

Land Mediation Boards For Reconciliation in N-E

“Two disputants agreed to visit the village sage seeking mediation on their bitter dispute. He listened patiently to both. At the end, addressing one, the mediator said the disputant was right. Turning to the other, the mediator said that he too was right. The watching wife asked how could both be right at the same time. The mediator replied, ‘you too are right’.”

The global inspiration

Roger Federer is once again the hot favourite to win next month’s Wimbledon. It has been five years since he won the title last. If he succeeds, the 35-year-old Swiss will be installed as Wimbledon’s greatest ever as he is now on a tie with Pete Sampras with seven titles each.   

A few drops of Beer and Wine into the ‘Yahapalanaya Cauldron’

The other day, the taxpayers or the general public who pay our legislators their salaries and sponsor other perks witnessed another very brilliant parliamentary session on which way the people who voted them to power should get intoxicated. In speaking for the well-being of the people, not a single honourable member of the parliament seemed to play second fiddle to any one of his colleagues and it is a singular honour to the people of this para

Why whitewash Gnanasara?

Human nature has not changed. It may have embraced new cultures. It may have rejected certain others. It may have progressed from check books to credit cards and e-banking but remains loyal to money and what it does to bring about outwardly pleasures and riches to a tiring businessman and an upstart youth heading for promotion after promotion for doubling and trebling sales in the company he works day in and day out. It continues to indulge in