I was not trying to run away - Dhaniz Ali

September 9 marks five months since the protest campaign to oust the then President Gotabaya Rajapaksa began at Galle Face. Tear gas and water.....

When Lankan eyes are tearing, cricket gives us hope

Sri Lanka, since early this year has run short of most essentials like petrol, gas, electricity, basic food items, medicines and many other necessities.

Ranjan for “Popular Leader” — Aragalya

“The inaugural meeting of the United National Party was held on Friday, September 6, 1946 at 5.00 pm at ‘Palm Court’, Albert Crescent.

Emotional damage

Recently, I had a long chat with a Sri Lankan colleague whose work I not only admire, but who is also someone with an unblemished....

Lanka’s debt crisis and global recession - EDITORIAL

Hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic, rampant corruption, rising oil prices and economic mismanagement under previous governments....

Proposed TRC may meet the fate of earlier commissions

A weekly paper said on Sunday that the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) is to revive an earlier proposal to set up a Truth and Reconciliation.....

Gunapala Kannangara passes away

Mr. Gunapala Kannangara father of Former Colombo/ Ratnapura and Ampara District Secretary Sunil Kannangara passed away....

The balancing act between legitimacy and stability

Three new political party alliances are preparing for the forthcoming elections, while the country is reeling under an unprecedented economic crisis. Two alliances comprising of a few small parties headed by Wimal Weerawansa and another small section of the ruling party led by Dullas Alahapperuma are almost formed. Both these groups were with the

Justice for Gotabaya and Justice for Sri Lanka!

Ex-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa is back after a whirlwind tour of self-exile that took him to the Maldives, to Singapore, and finally to Thailand. None of his hosts was enthused to have him for longer and Gotabaya himself seemed to have felt that the whole experience was an act of needless humiliation. He has every right to return home and the government of Sri Lanka has a constitutional obligation to take him back. However, the same constit

Proposal to register all individuals above 18 years with the Tax Authorities

There are several proposals in the Interim Budget that are desirable such as those relating to public sector instit

IMF agreement, Chinese loan and poverty crisis - EDITORIAL

The International Monetary Fund has tentatively offered Sri Lanka a US$2.9 billion (£2.5bn) loan to help the country recover from the worst economic crisis. The funding is meant to provide some....

Budget for IMF with Fiscal Waterboarding

Last week in Colombo might have appeared eventful. An Interim Budget was announced for the last four months of the year, a Staff Level agreement was reached with the International Monetary Fund....

Gota’s legacy and the ecological damage: This disaster is environmental as well as economic

In a short story by Isaac Bashevis Singer, a woman survivor of the Holocaust is having coffee at a roadside café many years after the war when she sees Adolf Hitler crossing the street. Terrified....

Pop Singer A. E. Manoharan Flopped as a Film Actor

Blessed are those Sri Lankans who have lived in different parts of the country, travelled widely within its borders and interacted with all people cutting across ethnic and religious barriers during times of peace and tranquillity in the past. Those who have had such broad experiences unsullied by narrow sectarianism know that the Island is truly “God’s own country” populated by friendly, good-natured people.

Trade unions’ dilemma over IMF programme

The government’s move to restructure state-owned enterprises (SOEs) such as SriLankan Airlines, Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) and Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) has irked the trade unions in those institutions.

Peace: Let us remember we belong to each other

In Sri Lanka, racism and racial riots have often created crises. The first riots against the Tamil-speaking people took place in 1958 and thereafter several times, the worst being in 1983.

The political legacy of Gorbachev: The death of balance of power

Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Soviet leader, died on Tuesday at the age of 91 in a Moscow hospital, without confirming or....

Reflecting on the words ‘work or depart’ - Editorial

State employees in general need to lift their performance as workers. This is the general thinking of people who visit state....

Legal Implications of the recent Protests

The protests that started in mid-March and culminated in the storming of the President’s House and Presidential Secretariat on....

In remembrance of Mikhail Gorbachev

On the evening of August 30 this year, Mikhail Gorbachev, the first and last President of the Soviet Union passed away. It marked the end of an era and the demise of a man of great integrity.

Julie Chung and fire hoses of falsehoods

US Ambassador Julie Chung was spot on. A few days ago, she pointed out, correctly, that ‘fake news - and fake tweets - are a real problem.

Devastating economic crisis and the interim budget - EDITORIAL

Yesterday President Ranil Wickremesinghe submitted his government’s interim budget to parliament. It comes at a time of desperation.....

Children, the most vulnerable group today

In a community survey conducted by a TV station over the weekend, a girl of about five years old, was heard saying that she has been served with an egg by her mother only on the day her father brings home his salary. This heart-wrenchin

Can Lankans make politicians pay the cost of economic ruin?

Sri Lanka ranks 102 out of 180 countries in Transparency International’s corruption perception index. However, in terms of grand corruption, or the corruption at the highest level, and capable of distorting entire national policy, it rivals African kleptocracies

Need to reform PTA ahead of UNHRC session

The demand in the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for the repeal of Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and its replacement with a law consistent with international norms has been persistent. In the September 2022 session of the council, it is likely to get top billing, given the recent events related to the civil disturbances in the i

Will Asia go the way of Ukraine in Europe? - EDITORIAL

Europe considers itself to be among ‘the most civilized nations in the world’. Yet, here we are in the 21st century witnessing death....

Fascists, neo fascists, and SL’s future

President Ranil Wickremesinghe is everyone’s problem, and hostility to his presidency has been mounting from day one. He didn’t help.....

Appapillai Amirthalingam From Enfant Terrible to Elder Statesman

Friday August 26th was the 95th birth anniversary of well-known Sri Lankan Tamil political leader and one-time leader of the opposition Appapillai Amirthalingam.

Democracy: people must choose well and wisely

In the aftermath of the COVID pandemic and the unprecedented public uprising against the former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa or the socio-economic and political crisis,

Sri Lankans migrating to greener pastures

The commonwealth games have come to an end with several members of the Sri Lankan team gone missing which had made a mockery of the Sri Lanka points table as Gold - 0, Silver -1, Bronze-3, Missing-10, Found-2, bringing much embarrassment to the country.