The place for law in a country obsessed WITH peace and religion - EDITORIAL

Sri Lanka is a country which begins the day with Buddhist hymns being aired on all televisions early in the morning. When....

Ukraine war, Sri Lanka and IMF prescriptions

While an International Monetary Fund delegation is in Sri Lanka to hold further talks on a staff-level agreement, a preliminary step....

The Elephant in the Room

During a recent speech to the audience at an economics seminar, President Ranil Wickremesinghe suggested that the IMF bailout will require a restructuring of domestic debt, referring to Treasury Bonds and US Dollar-denominated Sri Lanka Development Bonds (SLDBs).

Plugging loopholes in Sri Lanka’s maritime security architecture

The recent Sri Lanka-India-China triangular controversy over the docking of the Chinese research vessel Yuan Wang 5 at Hambantota port, once again underscores the need to have a Sri Lankan National Maritime Strategy, a functioning National Security Council (NSC) staffed by experts, and the appointment of a National Security Advisor (NSA).

Free health-care, debt restructuring and subsidy cuts

As far back as 340–368 AD, King Buddhadasa of Anuradhapura - himself a practicing Ayurvedic physician - pioneered the building of many hospitals in the country. He set up a healthcare system with one hospital for ten villages which were funded by tax on the revenue from fields of the villages.

Beware the Neddas!

The Aragalaya brought to the fore an interesting class of people, small in numbers but certainly effective, at least in terms of delivering the deliverables for which their bosses reward them one way or another. All countries have had such people, Sri Lanka included. Given the circumstances of their current manifestation they could be called ‘NEDdas.’

Of blushing buttocks and freedom to express

I grew up in a non-conformist household. We were encouraged to question the norm if we felt it should be and never ever made....

Restructuring the domestic debt is a red line - EDITORIAL

In an overview of our country’s economy the World Bank reports ‘Sri Lanka faces unsustainable debt and significant balance.....

Importance of looking at the bigger picture

The Police Department had sought assistance from the public to identify a group of people whom the police said had forcibly entered the President’s House, the Temple Trees and the Prime Minister’s official residence. This raises the questions whether the authorities are planning to arrest all those who stormed these two state buildings as well

Sri Lanka’s lost people’s revolution

If anyone is looking for a crash course as to how hard it is to push for genuine democratic reforms from the bottom up, the recent Sri Lankan experience offers one. It is an even more poignant lesson for it once looked like a fairy tale success. Spontaneous night-time vigils held by the citizens, enraged by the rising cost of living and shortage of basic sup

IMF facility and future burdens - EDITORIAL

A delegation from the IMF is expected to visit our country between August 24 and 31 in response to Lanka’s application for a facility from the institution. At present....

Marking 75 years of Indian Independence: DEMOCRACY THAT IS INDIA: INTRIGUING, EVOLVING AND INSPIRING

Preserving democratic values, ensuring the maintenance of democratic standards and strengthening the process of democratization, are formidable measures for any country. When a country....

Saying No to Authoritarian Governance

A group comprising academics, professionals, individuals from the corporate sector, activists, civil society organisations and clergy issuing a statement, has raised concerns over the country’s authoritarian governance. The full statement is as follows:

Diaspora investments not to come soon

The government’s move to remove some of the overseas Sri Lankan Tamil organizations and individuals from its previous list of organizations and individuals supporting terrorist activities is somewhat perplexing.

Best way to find yourself: Lose yourself in the service of others

You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you, says John Bunyan English writer,

In search of a system that eliminates doubt - EDITORIAL

There is still much doubt in the minds of Sri Lankans about their future here in the island despite there being a regime change and....

Rushdie in the news again: Free speech rights linked to responsibilities

What is common between Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie and early biographers of Islam’s Prophet? Fiction. At the core....

People who were in the Aragalaya without any political agenda were not harmed - Manusha Nanayakkara

Manusha Nanayakkara, the minister of labour and foreign employment, made a welcoming decision to amend the labour laws....

Political geographies; imagined and real

Literally, yes, where one ends the other starts and apart from that common boundary there can be no overlap. On the other hand,

Structural change, modernisation and IMF bailout

Speaking at the ‘Reform Now’ conference organized by the Advocata Institute, President Ranil Wickremesinghe revealed that the agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) regarding the grant for a restructuring facility which could enable the country to come out of its near bankrupt situation had been postponed to September.

The despicable attack on Salman Rushdie - EDITORIAL

Four days ago, British-born author Salman Rushdie was stabbed by a knife-wielding attacker at a literary event in New York. Rushdie....

Aragalaya is far from over

Many are busy conducting post mortem reports for the Aragalaya. Some call it a success and others regard it with scorn stating that it only....

Have an objective policy on Tamil diaspora

The top officials of the Defence Ministry have been pushed to the level of politicians who voted for the 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th Amendments to the Constitution, in respect of handling the overseas Sri Lankan Tamil organizations. These

Colombo’s deferral of the port of call by Chinese ship Is an act of irrational appeasement?

Small countries cannot insulate themselves from the systemic forces of a great power rivalry unfolding in their neighbourhood. But, with a little bit of common sense, they can make sure that they would not become willing captives of that competitive power dynamic. Howeve

How India came out of the 1991 economic crisis Liberalization greatly helped, but consistency is required for full benefits

In 1991, the Indian economy was in dire straits, in some ways like what Sri Lanka has been going through in the past year. Unlike Sri Lanka, India did not default on external loans but was on the verge of it. It pledged its gold hol

JVP Support Surges with the Collapse of the Economy and the Gotabaya Presidency

The street protests and the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on July 14 was accompanied by a collapse in support for the ruling parties. The nation faces critical economic and political choices, but this did not lead to public consensus about whom to support. That is now changing, with the NPP/JVP emerging as the most popular cho

Principles abandoned; Israel plays with fire - EDITORIAL

Between August 5 to 7, Israel attacked residential areas in Palestine’s Gaza Strip. According to the Ministry of Health in Gaza.....

Universal Social Welfare vs. Targeted Social Protection

Every crisis leads to reflections about our past and debates about the way forward. The devastating crisis now is similarly a time....

Wickremesinghe, Alahapperuma and the 2022 Presidential Election

Leon Trotsky famously observed, “Politics is more like algebra than like elementary arithmetic, and still more like higher rather than elementary mathematics”. The recent election of President Ranil Wickremesinghe by Sri Lankan members of Parliament appears to be an illustrative example of Trotsky’s statement about Politics being more like Algebra than Arithmetic.

Violence in Aragalaya and crackdown

The ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) and some of the political parties which were closely connected to it until recently such as the National Freedom Front (NFF) are hell-bent in vilifying and demonizing the people’s uprising, commonly known as the “Aragalaya” that overthrew the Gotabaya Rajapaksa Presidency and proved how unpopular the government dominated by the SLPP is.