Tea and lack of empathy

For years, even before our country received independence, it was the income from the tea industry which formed the backbone of our country’s economy. Even after independence, it was the income from tea that provided the main export earning

From three-wheeler drivers to beach boys: Sri Lanka’s workforce transformation

For a country that takes pride in its free education system, Sri Lanka has done a miserable job in putting its human capital to productive work.

Israel reportedly agrees to resume talks

Under international pressure Israel has reportedly agreed to resume talks on a solution to the Gaza crisis. Widespread...

Leaders of North and South should think afresh - EDITORIAL

Like a ritual, the United Nations Human Rights Council has been issuing reports annually on the human rights situation in Sri Lanka....

“Operation Sajaba”; Blueprint for Re-unification of the Green Party

Sri Lanka’s United National Party (UNP) suffered a humiliating electoral defeat in the 2020 Parliamentary elections. Electoral debacles were nothing new to the UNP which is referred to by some....

China and Russia together: A new world order?

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s state visit to China is more than a show of friendship and unity in adversity. It shows ambition on both sides to create a new multi-polar world order challenging....

Presidential pardons -for whose benefit? - EDITORIAL

The large-scale pardoning of prisoners by Lankan Presidents for the commission of minor crimes has become customary during particular festivals, for example the day marking the country’s....

Tragedy and farce on a day of mourning

As the monsoonal rains are set to wreak havoc and a climate emergency is in the making, the government had other pressing priorities. It declared a day of national mourning over the death of Iranian President and Islamic hardliner Ebrahim Raisi, whose VIP chopper crashed during a trip from Azerbaijan. Nicknamed ‘Butcher of Tehran’ for his role in the death commission in 1988, which executed thousands of political dissidents, Raisi is no angel. Hi

Sajith-Anura Debate, that never happened

Both leaders should be held responsible for sabotaging the debate. They repeated their 2022 strategy of evading responsibility by refusing to address the task of revitalizing the bankrupt economy. However, they deserve commendation for declining the offer, as they had the wisdom to recognize the enormity of the challenge, and acknowledging it as beyond their capabilities. A single pivotal moment or a well-made point can indeed have a significant

Commemoration of war victims-celebrations and harassment

Each year in April, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) marks its first armed insurrection against the government in 1971, as ‘April Heroes’ Commemoration Day. The second JVP insurrection is memorialised by way of the ‘November Heroes’ commemoration marking the death of JVP founder and leader Rohana Wijeweera in 1989. Wijeweera led two rebellions, one in 1971 and a second in 1989. Thousands of young Sinhalese men and women died in the two insurg

God won’t change your destiny until you change yourself

Following the Election Commission’s announcement on May 9 that the Presidential election would be held between September 17 and October 16, President Ranil Wickremesinghe informed the Cabinet on Wednesday that only the said election would be held this year putting an end to speculations that Parliament might be dissolved before the Presidential election. However, the race for the top most post started months ago with the Jathika Jana Balawegaya

The Marga Dialogue: Nationalism and centre-left

While moderating an event earlier this month at the Marga Institute, I was struck by the emergence of that age-old tension between nationalism and liberalism during a spirited question and answer session. The subject of that evening was the launch of Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka’s collection of essays, titled: “Interventions: Selected Political Writings”. While Dr. Jayatilleka himself insisted that the event and especially the panel discussion and Q&A b

ICC arrest warrants on Israeli leaders: US protests and threats outrageous

Israel has no intention to slow down its genocidal campaign in the Gaza Strip, even after a series of blows it suffered this week in the form of the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor seeking arrest warrants for its leaders and the recognition of Palestine as an independent state by three European countries: Ireland, Norway, and Spain.

On a ‘divided’ road and heading for trouble - EDITORIAL

The Sri Lanka Police has caused a stir in the motoring scene by making great efforts to strictly follow an old law that relates to the ownership of vehicles. What stirred a hornet’s nest in social media was when a female police officer checked a vehicle recently and demanded to know details of vehicle ownership.

Travelling on politics’ rough sea needs grooming

Sri Lanka is a country which believed in electing to Parliament individuals with unproven track records and later repented their actions. This is because this nation doesn’t have a system in present day politics where the senior lawmakers hand over the baton to the next generation of budding lawmakers.

Vesak: AlpachCHathawaya and moment-to-moment living - EDITORIAL

Millions of Sri Lankans and Buddhists across the world will celebrate their most hallowed festival of Vesak today while participating in various religious ceremonies with pandals, eight-fold lanterns and other decorations.

Social media comes to the fore in Indian elections

The 2024 Indian parliamentary elections will be remembered for many reasons. They are the longest to date, stretching....

Elections must be decided only by law - EDITORIAL

The elections in Sri Lanka are said to be conducted in a free and fair manner and according to the law. However, some laws....

Protests and crackdown: Rappers vs. the regime in Iran

In a country where rap is illegal, Toomaj chose rap to challenge Iran’s hardline regime which doesn’t tolerate dissent. Now he’s facing the death penalty for refusing....

Govt. should learn from Civil Society Organisations in commemorating dear departed

The joint commemoration event titled “Turning Point” held on May 17 at the Viharamahadevi Park in Colombo was in memory of the loss of life that took place 15 years ago....

The OHCHR strictures on Lanka -spitting in the wind - EDITORIAL

The Office of United Nations High Commissioner on Human Rights (OHCHR) on Friday the17th issued a strident call to the Sri Lanka Government (SLG) to urgently establish an independent....

IMF programme: The lender is the winner

The world is collapsing for our working people, with the tremendous rise in the cost of living, mass disruption of livelihoods, skipping meals due to broader food insecurity, and rising malnutrition....

Will Ranil regain support of Tamil and Muslim voters?

The three numerical minorities namely the Sri Lankan Tamils, Muslims and Indian Tamils together are 25.5% of the population. These three ethnic groups form the majority in some Sri Lankan districts. In other districts they are a substantive segment of the population. Since the people of all districts vote together in the Presidential elections, the entire island is transformed into a “single” constituency with a 74.9% Sinhala majority and 25.5 %

Who will benefit from an election boycott by Tamils?

Prediction of the results of the forthcoming Presidential election would be the most difficult one in Sri Lankan history, since almost all traditional attachments of the voters with the main political parties seem to have been shattered to the core by the economic crisis that brought millions of people to the streets in 2022.

Members of our Parliament and French Queen Marie Antoinette -EDITORIAL

Hardly a day passes without hearing the profligacy and misdeeds of one or the other members of Parliament. Just two days ago, while strong criticism was being voiced at Members of Parliament for demanding permits to import new cars for themselves, a State Minister reportedly slapped an airport worker for demanding payment for services rendered.

Lawmakers must note that stars in galaxy are dead - EDITORIAL

Sri Lanka is divided politically at present. Many years ago this country was divided in terms of race. Politics seems to be the cause of all this evil. Now we are told to prepare for a presidential.....

Nakba continues amid Zionist newspeak

Nakba is indisputably a living testimony to the brutality of the beast among humans. The fact that it has been committed against victimised Palestinians for the past 76 years, again and again....

1998 Bharathipuram killings and accountability for wartime atrocities

The killing of civilians and other atrocities were widespread during the three-decade war mostly in the North and the East. The Sri Lankan armed forces, police and the Liberation....

Family is the first essential cell of human society

Families stay together if they regularly pray or meditate together. This is a hallowed philosophy that goes a long way to show that good families make good societies and countries. We need to see unity in diversity in families with none dominating or having his/her way. Family members need to be sacrificial and forgiving, embodying values of love, peace, joy, patience, kindness, humility, gentleness and meekness. Some believe the husband is the h

Stolen Assets Recovery Framework: There is much room for improvement

The rallying call for recovering stolen assets during the 2022 protests is still fresh in our minds. If the Abacha loot could be returned to Nigeria by Switzerland, could Sri Lanka not do the same? In response to the protests and building on the work done by experts over many years, the agreement between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the IMF now contains a structural benchmark where the GoSL has committed to enact a Proceeds of Crime Ac