Black January and enemies within the fraternity

Here in Sri Lanka, those who step into the troubled waters of journalism do not come with fairytale versions of the vocation which comes without a collar. Nor do they come with the expectations of exhibiting swashbuckling heroics.  They are under no illusion that with it come the perks and privileges inherent to lesser risky professions. In here, anyone who becomes a journalist does so by his or her individual choice; there is a risk one car

Give SL time to carryout LLRC recommendations

Following is a  statement by  Ravinatha Aryasinha, Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Belgium, Luxembourg and the EU at the ‘Sri Lanka Briefing’  convened by the ‘Friends of Sri Lanka’ group of the European Parliament, held on 25 January 2012 at the European Parliament

50th ANNIVERSARY OF ABORTIVE COUP D’ETAT CONSPIRACY IN JANUARY 1962

Fifty years ago on Sunday January 28th 1962 the people of the Island nation known then as “Ceylon” were rocked by a special news bulletin in the afternoon  on “Radio Ceylon” (Sri Lanka Broadcasting  Corporation)that interrupted regular programming . The shocking announcement repeated ad nauseam by a male voice on Radio stated that a conspiracy to stage a coup d’etat had been foiled.

NATIONAL PROBLEM,NOT NATIONAL PAST-TIME

The recent Sri Lanka visit of India’s External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna was not expected to throw up a sudden solution to the ethnic issue. His public statement that President Mahinda Rajapaksa had reiterated his commitment to a ’13-plus’ solution, however, has triggered a ‘national discourse’ on the ‘national problem’, which was not the case earlier. Once again, the discourse should not be allowed t

YOUR VOICE - Web Feedback

AIPAC has always voted Democrat 'en-bloc' and it may not change in 2012. True some hardcore members of the Jewish lobby are making some noise but they are in the minority supported by the Christian Evangelists. But then again the CE will not vote for a Mormon (Romney) as they see it as a cult and has nothing to do with Christianity because of their book of mormon. Considering all this, Obama has a very good chance, his 'war chest'

THE VICES OF ADULT ENTERTAINMENT AND MORAL POLICING

During the final months of 2010 the Sri Lankan government banned approximately 400 local and international porn sites. These sites were referred to the Juvenile Courts and thereafter assistance was obtained from the Telecommunications Regulatory Commissio

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON DILSHAN’S RESIGNATION AND MAHELA’S APPOINTMENT AS THE NEW CAPTAIN?

To be very frank it’s a good change but it happened a bit late. Mahela should have been taken in after Sanga resigns. Dilshan has tried in all possible ways to be a good captain and its obvious that we cannot compare him with any captain in the past and because his style is different and it didn’t work. Mahela’s appointment is a wise choice. Mathews has to learn things from his seniors to safe guard his place.

Yes, Obama can do it again

President Barack Obama is ready for the battle although defeat was staring him in the face only months ago with many analysts writing him off as an unfortunate one-time president.

Back to Tahrir

Tahrir has come full circle. One year down the line, the mood is one of celebration and caution. Today, Egypt is free from the dictates of Hosni Mubarak, as he stands trial, and the parliamentary elections have bestowed power into the hands of the...

the business community and reconciliation

The Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute of International Relations and Strategic Studies (LKIIRSS) hosted the second session of the National...

The credit-line crisis

Greece is yet not out of the woods. Though it has successfully negotiated a bailout package with the international lenders, including the European Union, it is stuck in the mud in cutting a deal with the private creditors.

LLRC report: used as an ornament, not as a tool

More than a month has lapsed since the final report of the Lessons Learnt and reconciliation commission (LLRC) was handed over to President Mahinda Rajapaksa by the Commission’s Chairman C.R.de Silva. But the Government has not uttered officially a single word as to whether it is going to implement the recommendations  or discard it as it had done to the final report of the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) presented to the Pre

“We have all been struck by the opportunity here”

Q: What is the purpose of your visit to Sri Lanka, and is there any particular message that you have sought to convey through this visit? Perhaps it will be helpful if I first explain what my job is and put that in the context of some of the other visits that we’ve had over the course of the last 10 days. I am the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the South Asian region within our Bureau of South and Central Asia. My responsibility on a full

Being the change that you want to see in the world

Volunteerism. Activism. Being the change that you want to see in the world. As a young person, today when I look around, I see and hear of groups, movements, events and programmes all aimed at incorporating a culture of volunteerism and activism in the lives of people.

Volunteerism is an integral part of who we are as human beings: Pansieri

United Nations Volunteers Executive Coordinator Flavia Pansieri spoke to the Daily Mirror, while in the country, on the importance of volunteerism, the ardent efforts of local volunteers towards the reconciliation process and the support given by UN voluteers for achieving the Millennium Development Goals.

Quotes of the Week

Dr. Abdul Kalam the 11th President of India and  the renowned aerospace engineer, professor (of Aerospace engineering), and first Chancellor of the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology Thiruvananthapuram (IIST) is in Colombo, here are snippets of his wisdom shared at various events this week.

What Remains to be Done: Minimising Inequality in Sri Lanka

The Human Development Index (HDI) has become an alternative to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for measuring ‘development’ or the progress of nations.  Introduced in the first Human Development Report published by the United Nations in 1990, it is based on the premise that “people are the real wealth of a nation”.  As Amartya Sen pointed out in the 20th Anniversary volume of the Human Development Report published in

Rowdyism at Rameswaram by Tamilnadu"activist"mob

Rameswaram (Rameshwar) in the South of Tamil Nadu state in India is revered by  Hindus all over the world  as a place of tremendous religious significance.The Island town was the  scene of an ugly rumpus on the tenth of this month when a well-known Sri Lnkan Tamil businessman visiting for a religious purpose was  victimized in a deplorable act of rowdyism. He  was apparently targeted  because  of his relationshi

Liberalism and evolving politial authorit arianism

Following is an introduction by Prof Rajiva Wijesinha, at the seminar organized to mark the 25th anniversary of the Liberal Party of Sri Lanka. Thirty years ago, to paraphrase the article Chanaka Amaratunga wrote to celebrate Liberalism Ten Years After, a political movement committed to the promotion of liberal values and the defence of the liberal democratic process was launched in Sri Lanka.

A national shame

In a speech delivered last year to a gathering of India's finest scientific minds, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh invoked Nehru to point to the organic "link between humanism, tolerance, reason and progress." "The practice of science," he said, "is based on both the search for truth and the adventure of new ideas.

Pakistan Supreme Court acts boldly to save democracy

Some years ago, graffiti on a Karachi wall read: "We apologise for this temporary democratic interruption. Normal martial law will be resumed shortly."

Intra-party conflict and declining loyalties

In recent months the public has witnessed divisions within the main opposition parties, however now it ...

Expats and the LLRC Report Recommendations

Amjad Saleem Since the end of the war two years ago, Sri Lanka has been at a stagnant point vis-a-vis reconciliation.  Whilst development has taken off, the larger political and social components of post war reconciliation have yet to gain much momentum.

The General and the labyrinth

The controversy over the age of General V.K. Singh, the subject of an already heated and often unseemly public debate, is now threatening to get out of hand. With the Army Chief left with no resort but to challenge the Defence Ministry in the Supreme Court in order to "protect his integrity and honour," the issue has the makings of an unseemly civilian-military confrontation that could easily have been avoided had plain common sense pre

Government’s promise to implement 13th-A plus

Tamil speaking political parties weighed on the Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna’s visit to Sri Lanka and its implications.  Indian Minister met his Sri Lankan counterpart Prof. G.L. Peiris, besides meeting with the political leaders, including the Leader of the Opposition, representatives of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and other parties.

University crises and vile objectives

The government is displaying various ‘skills’ lately. Not long ago the government got stuck in a vegetable crate. After unusually delaying results of the A/L examination the candidates were provided with a result that made them see stars. When there were accusations all around that the results were distorted the government skillfully provided a queer solution. The candidates were given more time to apply for re-evaluation! This was pr

“WE DID NOT HAVE A HIDDEN AGENDA IN OUR ENGAGEMENT”

Norwegian Ambassador Hilde Haraldstad In an interview with the Daily Mirror,Norwegian Ambassador to Sri Lanka Ms. Hilde Haraldstad discusses Norway’s role in post-war Sri Lanka, the LLRC report, the Norwegian government-commissioned report evaluating Norway’s peace efforts in Sri Lanka, and responds to allegations that Norway’s role in Sri Lanka’s peace process was not driven purely by altruistic considerations.

CAIRO’S COMPLEXITY

Egypt’s political uncertainties are far from over. The military junta, which is trying to broker a deal between those who have become part of the new system by participating in parliamentary polls and those camping on the Tahrir Square demanding reforms, is in a fix. Irrespective of the fact that the phased-wise ballot for national and provincial assemblies had gathered enough support, as is evident from an overwhelming turnout, the process

PSC:BEST PLACE TO DISCUSS THE TNA DEMANDS

OPEN LETTER TO THE TNA LEADERS That was a historical day. To be exact, it was 09th April 1958. The garden of Tintagel, the private residence of Prime Minister S W R D Bandaranaike, was full with saffron robes clad Buddhist monks. Rosemead Place had become a sea of people. Everybody shouted one slogan in unison. "Tear off the traitorous pact".

Thai Pongal- Festival of bountiful harvests and good luck

BY GAMINI JAYASINGHE Thai Pongal is a “Thanks giving ceremony” celebrated by farmers in particular to thank the nature spirit- the sun- and farm animals for bringing prosperity to agriculture with plentiful harvests. They venerate and thank the sun god – the nature spirit and offer the first part of the produce in the form of cooked rice. They do not forget to make this an occasion to thank the farm animals who contribute to t