Much needs to be done to resuscitate Sri Lanka - EDITORIAL

Tomorrow, Sri Lanka will mark its 74th anniversary of Independence after being under foreign rule for 443 years since 1505 – dominated....

Notes for an essay on Independence

Sometime next week, perhaps on Monday, somewhere or maybe even in most parts of the country, teachers will task students....

War Crimes, Crimes Against Humanity and the UNHRC - EDITORIAL

Later this month, our country will once again be on the United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) rack - the torture tool....

Removing Politico-Constitutional root cause of the crisis

Some would argue whether this juncture is hardly the time to be talking about constitutions. In fact, there are many who believe that Constitutions....

Land racket in Dambulla: Transferring Devalagama lands causes stir

Selling lands acquired illegally using fake deeds has become a practice in the country and Dambulla is infamous for such illegal....

Vaccine hesitancy

Although Sri Lanka’s vaccination programme against COVID-19 has been hailed by many the prospects of attaining herd immunity or the Community immunity is still in the balance. According to the Epidemiology Unit of the Health Ministry only around 14 million o

Feb 4: The independence and beyond

Sri Lanka celebrates the 74th Independence Day this week under the most precarious conditions in its independent history. This is by far the economically weakest hour in recent memory, and the countries options to dig it out of the hole are narrowi

Factors that shaped Galle port’s varying fortune

Busy as a beehive when the Portuguese, Dutch and the British were ruling the roost in Ceylon, Galle port became a sleepy backyard at the end of the 19th Century due to factors beyond its control. It was little more than a secondary port of call throughout the 20th Century. But change is on the cards now. There are clear signs o

Urea Phobia and Organic Disaster: Catastrophic Economic Outlook

Fertilizers can make or break a farm. Farming systems and practices have evolved from farmers’ experience and technological advancement over a long period of time. Any sudden changes by government regulations can result in serious adverse social and economic impacts. Sri Lanka has more than 2000 years of agricultural history. Hence, farmers possess a signifi

Back to firewood – every politician should try it!

Last week, I took the plunge and set up a ‘firewood kitchen apparatus’ in the garage. I went without gas for two days before......

Corruption, mismanagement and our debt crisis - EDITORIAL

For the past 20 years or more different governments which ruled our country have borrowed large sums of money, amounting....

I urged SL Govt to take concrete steps towards Justice, Accountability - UK Minister

Lord Tariq Mahmood Ahmad, the Minister for Central and South Asia in the UK who arrived in Sri Lanka recently speaks to Daily Mirror.....

1962 Coup:Takeover of Govt. Through “Operation Holdfast”

The 1962 Coup d’etat conspiracy had three noteworthy aspects.Firstly the architects of the conspiracy wanted a bloodless coup.

“Sahara Snowstorm” and SL’s hilarious pledge for “New Normalcy”

“Sahara” the warmest and the largest desert on planet earth reported snowstorms on 18 January last. Spread across 9.2 million sq. km stretching from parts of North Africa,

Social justice: people need to become other-centred

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is clear that the capitalist global market economic system is failing.

Back to the seventies? Remembering the famine-like situation that prevailed fifty years ago

What is in store for the Sri Lankans in the near future, given the current gloomy economic crisis? It is vividly clear that the Government is struggling without solutions to any of the problems, faced....

Time to work on new impetus in Türkiye- Sri Lanka relations- Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu -

Despite the geographical distance, Turkey and Sri Lanka, resemble each other in several aspects. We have our distinct....

SRI Lanka celebrates 75 proud years of filmmaking - EDITORIAL

The Sinhala cinema celebrated 75 years this year marking a long and hard journey in moviemaking. Our minds run back to the first film-Kadawuna Porinduwa- that marked the start of the local cinema....

Ukraine crisis: US, Russia need to find the middle ground

Is the Third World War coming soon with the United States together with its Western allies deciding to take on Russia over the Ukrainian crisis? It is said nuclear powers do not go to war due to what.....

Minister says no power cuts, officials say they’re inevitable - EDITORIAL

Sri Lanka is currently grappling with one of its worst ever economic crises in decades with the shortage of essential commodities....

New Diamond and X-press Pearl incidents: Underhand deals spoiling compensation claims

Seeking compensation for the environmental damage caused by the fire-stricken vessels has become almost unthinkable due.....

The ‘impending’ famine and poverties of seeing

Hyperbole seems to be an essential tool in a politician’s repertoire. ‘Promises’ would constitute another. ‘Politician’ of course....

Hot air over Ukraine and China - EDITORIAL

For over a week, events in Ukraine have come to dominate news headlines the world over. US President Biden claims thousands of Russian troops are massed.....

Take a breather, we all need it

My last column, where I wrote about my personal struggle of reporting on the Lasantha Wickrematunge murder generated quite a bit of reactions. Some were praising me, most were ambivalent ....

Ministers wailing before the masses

It is ludicrous that while people are suffering from severe shortage of essential goods such as domestic gas and milk powder and a threat of imminent long hours of power cuts is looming, ministers who are responsible for resolving these issues are pointing finger at each other in public and attempting to absolve themselves from their responsibilities.

Bath Dun Piya (father who feeds the nation): Xi Jing Piya

In the national mythology, certain personalities are accorded a special place for their rightful contribution or their omnipotent control of the system that enabled them to carve out a larger than life-size stature. So, D.S. Senanayake, the first prime ministe

Coup ’62: PM Sirimavo, Service Chiefs to a Dungeon Awaiting Execution?

The acting Navy Chief, Rajan Kadirgamar was another key officer to be arrested and held incommunicado for a certain period of time. On the morning of D-day, the 27th,CC Dissanayake, DIG [CC], met a few....

Messa: A neglected masterpiece?

Eric Illayaparachchi’s most recent literary creation, the novel Messa is a profound work that needs the attention of a larger audience than it has gained so far. Eric Illayaparachchi....

War drums, Russia’s red lines, NATO expansionism and Ukraine - EDITORIAL

Currently Europe is on edge. War drums are beating once again in the Balkans. Ukraine and Russia are as yet engaged in a war of words, with Ukraine claiming Russia is about....

Debt Restructuring and Structural Reforms: It’s Class, Stupid!

The Sri Lankan economy is sinking deeper and deeper into crisis. The economic establishment and their policies that reduced the country to this state of affairs are screaming for more....