Terrorists with nuclear weapons?

US aviation authorities banned the carrying of toothpaste on planes heading to the Sochi Winter Olympics for fear they might contain a deadly explosive. Apparently such is the creativity of the modern terrorist.

Editorial - The monster of economic neo-colonialism

The hydra-headed monster or monstrosity of economic neo-colonialism by the rich world and its business partner the transnational corporations (TNCs) are attacking Third World Countries including Sri Lanka in vital areas.

Confounding UNHRC at the ballot box

After the closing of nominations for the provincial council elections on February 6, Colombo district secretary read out the list of the names of political parties that tendered nominations. Seemingly unintentionally, he could not mention the United National Party (UNP), the main opposition which has a formidable base in.......

At a presidential election Sobhitha Thera’s candidacy will have countrywide support

A presidential election may not be on the political calendar of the country just yet as the government is preoccupied with the elections in the Western and Southern provinces as well as the upcoming sessions of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva.

Turning royal farmer into a TNC beggar - Editorial

The National Movement for the Protection of Sri Lankan Farmers and Seeds on Tuesday held a meeting attended by representatives of scores of farmer organisations which unanimously decided to reject the proposed new Seed Act under which tens of thousands of farmers will be compelled to buy their seeds from.........

OTHERS' “black spots” affected my chances to obtain candidacy ......

Amidst the upcoming election uproar candidates who faced nomination committees of their respective parties grabbed attention during the past few weeks. Among the many candidates belonging to various professions three candidates who faced Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) nomination committee,  Ruwanthi Mangala.....

An Ecclesia D570 makes its debut at the Thomian chapel

The Thomian choir is part of a tradition that goes back to 1854 when the choir made its debut at the consecration of the Cathedral Church of Christ on St. Matthew’s Day by Bishop James Chapman in the grounds of S. Thomas’ College in Mutwal. When the college moved to Mount Lavinia in 1918 the community worshipped in a....

The Punching Bag called Sri Lanka

The ‘Productivity’ of the so called ‘war’ has not ended.  At first the so called ‘war’ spawned a breed of carpet baggers known as `conflict resolutionists’ who made a literal ‘killing’ off the war.  They were closely accompanied by members of the so called ‘Tamil Diaspora’ who, from the safety of the..........

Illegal Wildlife Crime and its social implications

In January this year China made history by destroying, for the first time, a huge stockpile of confiscated ivory in the city of Dongguan. Six tonnes were pulverised in crushing machines, demonstrating very publicly China’s commitment to fighting for our natural environment. I know a similar event is being planned in Hong Kong.

Democratising Nation-Building

As organised and natural processes of post-war nation-building are continuing in Sri Lanka, it is important to infuse the discourse with a critical component of democratisation: The need for public participation and ownership of programmes of nation-building.

Regulate charges at private hospitals - Editorial

Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena again assured Parliament last Friday that legislation to implement the National Medicinal Drugs Policy (NMDP) based on Prof. Senaka Bibile’s essential medicines concept would be presented next month – after a delay of about nine years.

Betting the bottom dollar on Packer’s one-upmanship

Forbes Asia reported on 29 January 2014 that Australia’s casino king James Packer had claimed he just won approval from the Sri Lankan government to build a five-star casino resort in Colombo.

Threats to online transactions

The further development of the World Wide Web is threatened by the lack of online privacy and efforts to destroy net neutrality, says the father of the Web, Sir Tim Berners-Lee. He believed the world......

Colombo Art Biennale 2014 Art has to be irreverent, or it risks being banal

Colombo Art Biennale 2014 started on Thursday Jan. 30. But I was able to attend only from Tuesday Feb. 04. So here we go, in diary form, trying to comprehend a packed, sometimes dazzling, occasionally boring, mostly very interesting week of activity which tried to bring almost every major art form into focus.

Transforming State Institutions for a Better Quality of Life

Sri Lanka has perhaps the highest density of state officials when compared with the size of its population. We also have perhaps the largest number of people holding political office for a country of its size.....

Editorial - Political chicanery at election time

Minister Mervyn Silva was seen on television footages “inaugurating” a bus service from Kiribathgoda to Kelaniya via Wanawasala last week during which nominations were tendered for the Western.....

an appointment made under a cloud

The students of the Sri Lanka Law College were recently faced with a distraction; the buzz created by aspersions cast on the integrity of the head of the institution. This would hardly be viewed as an anomaly in Sri Lanka, in which many of these occurrences are commonplace. It was, however an incident that..............

Presidential honours for veteran Physicians

The annual induction of the 38th president of Ceylon College of Physicians, the oldest college of medical specialties, was held on January 25, 2014 at the Grand Ballroom, Hilton Hotel, Colombo. This year’s theme was “Unity in Diversity”.

Compared to a politician what a doctor could do is so little - Dr. Sudath Damsinghe ....

The elections to the Western and Southern Provincial Councils is in full swing. Not only traditional politicians but personalities from well reputed and respected professions have also joined the fray for the March elections. spoke to two medical practitioners, one who is contesting from the Colombo District on the.......

‘Have you got what it takes to think CRITICALLY?’ 

Critical thinking is hard to come by because it needs a lot of training; painstaking training, meticulous calculating and a lot of discipline in keeping oneself fresh. We are used to being trained by another but self-training is rare and not common. So what is this ‘rare’ form of thinking?

It is not Cricket - Editorial

Cricket is no longer the gentlemen’s game. If anyone was in doubt, the confirmation came on Saturday from Singapore where the Executive Board meeting of the International Cricket Council (ICC) took place. At that meeting, eight out of the ten full member countries voted for the change of the ICC constitution and......

Vettivelu Yogeswaran Darling of Tamil Youth who became Jaffna MP

Last week this column saw paying tribute to the memory of Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) MP Dr. Neelan Tiruchelvam on account of his 70th birth anniversary. This column focuses this week on......

Learning lessons from Libya

On Saturday Libya beat Ghana to win the African Nations’ Football Championship. Is it a return to normalcy? To win, a team must have a first-class pitch and a non-stressed-out team

Editorial - A mockery?

Some interesting images of Army personnel getting trained to face civil protests appeared in the media recently. The pictures showed the personnel armed with transparent shields and batons, as well as......

An appreciation - C.R. de Silva former AG was a friend in need

“A friend in need is a friend indeed”: this is an adage I always used whenever  I mentioned  the name of my friend  C.R.  de Silva, former Attorney General  of Sri Lanka. I first met Chithra Ranjan de Silva at the High Court of Gampaha  in 1973, when he was the State Counsel .

Centenary celebrations at the Church of Mother of Purification, Pitipana, Negombo

The 100th jubilee of the Church of St Mary, Mother of Presentation in Pitipana Negombo was celebrated on Sunday, February 2. The 100- year jubilee was celebrated under the auspices of the Archbishop of Colombo, Rt Rev. Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith.

If Kashmir dispute is resolved, the whole of SAARC would prosper

The dispute between India and Pakistan over Kashmir is perhaps the only world crisis that has not seen any real international peacemaking efforts in recent decades. As the world marked Kashmir Solidarity Day on Wednesday, it became clear that the United Nations and.......

Key to Next Elections

Colombo District results at the forthcoming Provincial Council elections hold the key to the outcome of the next General or Presidential election scheduled for 2014/2015. Colombo District and Colombo Municipal Council area are two worlds.

Going in search of democracy - Editorial

As nominations close and a vibrant if not vituperative campaign begins for elections to the Western and Southern Provincial Councils on March 29, the media will also play an important role and the time may be appropriate to reflect on the real state of the media today.

Our only coalition will be with the people

I joined the JVP in 1987 and since then I have been a full-time member of the JVP. Following the insurrection in 1988 and 1989 and the suppression of the party, I gained entry into the Kelaniya University in 1991 and completed my Bachelors of Science.