Accord on Iran’s nuclear programme Rein in the Israelis

Now that Iran and the US have agreed to negotiate over Iran’s nuclear programme hopes are rising that a deal can be made that will end the 34- year-long mutual estrangement.

The role of Sinhala literature in the era of the ethnic conflict 

In the foreword of the Tamil book “Sinhala Literature in the era of Ethnic war in Sri Lanka: A Pluralistic Review (1983-2007)” written by M.C. Rasmin the writer has come to this conclusion:  “Looking back at the history of Sri Lanka it is clear to us that the brutal war which lasted for more than 30 years has left our country wounded.

Sinhala poets explore new territory

Poetry isn’t what it used to be. This was my initial thought as I leafed through an attractively-designed volume of Sinhala-English bilingual poems at the now concluded Colombo International Book Fair.

Hi-tech to save water

During the past few decades, wars have been fought and a heavy price paid in human, material and financial resources for the rich countries to gain control of the remaining oil and natural gas resources in the world. 

Lanka’s Mahatma Gandhi, where art thou? - Editorial

In this era where we see a criminalisation of politics and the politicisation of crime with thuggary and hooliganism including widespread sexual abuse of children being rampant Sri Lanka desperately and urgently needs a statesman for our times—someone of the calibre of Mahatma Gandhi whose 144th birth anniversary was celebrated yesterday.

Here’s a method for meaningful electoral reforms

The pros and cons, or the advantages and disadvantages, of the First-Past-the-Post (FPP) and the Proportional Representation (PR) systems have been discussed at length for several years. 

TNA’s think tank ‘hindered’ by its emotional vote bank

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leaders, who were in Jaffna, hurriedly made their way to Colombo for a meeting yesterday.   The TNA, which achieved a resounding victory at the September 21 election, is now engaged in preparing the groundwork for the country’s first Northern Provincial Council (NPC).

That noise about the Tobacco bribe - Has Minister Sirisena acted irresponsibly?

A Sept 26 newspaper carried a response from Denish Dharmadasa, Corporate Affairs Director of The Ceylon Tobacco Company, stating categorically that the company never tried to offer money to the Minister of Health or to any other individual/organisation to stop the issuance of the above-referenced special gazette notification.

Pre-school education: the very first building block

Fondly known as “Aunty Violet” among kindergarten kids, Violet Siriwardena’s whole life has been about educating and nurturing kids. Having been working as a pre- school teacher for over 44 years she has seen numerous kids getting through pre-school and growing up to be responsible adults– she says, “ I can’t imagine doing anything else other than being with kids”.

Tragedy of domestic conflict and International Intervention

The idea of tragedy, its Greek or Shakespearean conception, pertains to ‘ethical struggles’ facing individuals who commit certain actions, subsequently causing ‘tragic’ consequences. Greek tragedies like Oedipus and Antigone or Shakespearean tragedies such as Hamlet and Macbeth provide examples of protagonists who confronted with certain ethical quandary commit actions (killing etc.) causing negative consequences for them

Awards aplenty at a great literary evening - State Literary Awards 2013

“The books that the world calls immoral are books that show the world its own shame. (Oscar Wilde) Every year many books are published in Sri Lanka. However, out of   these creations only the best are appreciated and recognised as contenders for literary awards. The State Literary Awards in Sri Lanka for the year 2013 was recently held at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) in Colombo where many writer

All Parties must defend Northern Fishermen

The Government’s decision on 18th September to confiscate Indian trawlers caught fishing illegally in Sri Lankan waters and swiftly repatriate the crew (see Daily Mirror 19th September), should be welcomed by anyone committed to improving the livelihoods of fishermen in the north of Sri Lanka.

Pali shown the door in Buddha’s Land

 The Un­ion Pub­lic Serv­ice Com­mis­sion (UPSC) of In­dia re­cent­ly re­moved the an­cient Pali lan­guage from the list of pre­scri­bed op­tion­al lan­guag­es of the main en­trance ex­ami­na­tion of the In­di­an Ad­min­is­tra­tive Serv­ice (IAS), al­so com­mon­ly known as the In­di­an Civ­il Serv­ice.

LSASL receives coveted ALSA membership

Reach­ing new heights in bring­ing both in­ter­na­tion­al and lo­cal law stu­dents to­geth­er, the Law Stu­dents As­so­ci­a­tion of Sri Lan­ka (LSASL) has done Sri Lan­ka proud by be­com­ing the first South Asian coun­try to re­ceive mem­ber­ship in the Asian Law Stu­dents As­so­ci­a­tion (AL­SA), at the Asian Fo­rum held in Man

Soratha Nayake Thera: Religious leader and social activist

The de­mise of Dr. Aluth­we­wa Sor­a­tha Krir­i­we­hera Ma­ha Nayake Thera is not on­ly a great loss to the Sa­sa­na but al­so to the aca­dem­ia in Sri Lan­ka as well. Dr. Sor­a­tha Naya­ke Thera’s serv­ice was not con­fined to his rou­tine re­li­gious du­ties at Kir­i­we­hera.

13-A and its limitations

The recent Supreme Court judgment laid bare the limitations of the 13th amendment. Hon Peiris says “Having adopted the above analysis and in the light of the structure and scheme of the constitutional settlement of the 13th amendment to the Constitution

Editorial - A bridge over the troubled Palk Strait

Hundreds of thousands of Sri Lankan fisherfolk are in dire straits because of the illegal, unregulated and unreported poaching by Indian fishermen in the Palk Strait. According to media reports, the poaching scandal has become a multi-million-dollar industry for the Tamil Nadu state

Will UN also face same fate as forerunner ‘League of Nations’?

The Syrian Crisis at a time when a plethora of developments are taking place after the alleged usage of chemical weapons by the Syrian Government forces in the City of Jasmine – Damascus, a total of 1,429 Syrians including, 426 children, were killed in the....

Rationalisation of state sector NEED OF THE HOUR

A Commission of Enquiry that was appointed by the then government headed by the late President Premadasa in 1990, following the second JVP-led youth uprising came to the conclusion that among other things, the allocation of......

Self-censorship is not black or white

During the hustle and bustle of the Colombo International Book Fair last Saturday, two works by prominent poet Buddhadasa Galappaththi were launched. The event was highlighted by two lectures on the intricate art of writing newspaper columns in Sri Lanka.

Elders left to the mercy of circumstances - Editorial

The bitter truth about the International Day of Elders or Older Persons which falls today with International Children’s Day is that while many authorities, NGOs and INGOs hold functions in view of it, thousands of elders are languishing and dying in hospitals and......

THE GREAT LAND ROBBERY

A determined naval rating butted Rajiv Gandhi with his rifle, before the Indian PM thumbed the Indo Sri Lanka Agreement amidst fanfare and gunshot. Some watching the incident on TV vouched J. R. Jayewardene (JR) was fleetingly amused before he did a rapid volte- face for diplomatic niceties– naturally

We always do what we believe is correct, right? Wrong!

A Teacher, who believes that learning at school should be student-oriented, told his class that they are going to discuss the topic of ‘Respect for Elders’. One girl jumped up and asked “but why?” The teacher, visibly shocked, asks her to explain her question further:

A time to rise like a phoenix from the ashes

The Northern Provincial Council election is now over. The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) comprising all sections of former militant groups (with the exception of Douglas Deva’s EPDP) as expected swept the board.

Editorial - Senaka Bibile: Talk is cheap, take action

Yesterday we again commemorated the 36th anniversary of the death of Prof. Senaka Bibile who is widely regarded as the greatest medical benefactor of humanity that Sri Lanka has hitherto produced. What he did for the people of Sri Lanka and the world is well-known.

Editorial - The first cabinet and today’s: what a contrast!

In this era of giant cabinets when few among the common people know who is the minister of what and what he or she is doing or not doing, we recall that it was on September 26 1947—64-years-ago that Sri Lanka’s first cabinet was sworn in.

PRODUCTIVITY IN PUBLIC SERVICE THEORY VS. PRACTICE

This article may be considered as an open proposal in response to the press notice published by the Ministry of Finance calling for proposals from the general public for the reformation of public service in Sri Lanka.

Gamini Fonseka : the uncrowned monarch of Sinhala Cinema

The electoral triumph of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) at the election to the Northern Provincial Council is being viewed by many as a significant breakthrough in the long struggle waged by Sri Lankan Tamils to achieve equality and justice in the Island.

Germany for peace and austerity

The Germany of the victorious Angela Merkel, the second most powerful political leader in the world, is the...

Editorial : Lawyers, here’s your vision and mission

In this explosive era where the rule of law is breaking down with lawlessness if not anarchy raging on...