Pakistan Sri Lanka Relations: Diplomacy and Statecraft at its Best

With Prime Minister Imran Khan’s scheduled visit to Colombo, Sri Lanka on February 23, the Pakistani Prime Minister....

Pakistan: Buddhism beyond Perceptions

Pakistan is an Islamic nation, where there is no Buddhist population. Buddhism was discouraged and Buddhists forcibly converted to Islam and....

Face Book news ban and what lies ahead

The Facebook ban on news in Australia on its platform was not totally unexpected. The social media giant has been threatening to do just that for some time.

Sri Lanka and the Culture of Impunity - EDITORIAL

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), investigating alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka under the US-sponsored Resolution on human....

VACCINATION CORRUPTION

The whole world is banking on the few vaccines produced by major countries to protect its population that stands at over 7.8 billion from COVID-19 pandemic. Around another 200 vaccine producing candidates are awaiting laboratory and clinical tests, some of which are at their last phase of clinical tests. However, there has also been discouraging ne

Govt’s incorrigible foreign policy: Tail wagging the dog?

Barely a few months ago, with the government of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was safely ensconced in power and with the ruling party SLPP having won a two-thirds majority in Parliament, the foreign policy interlocutors of the new government outlined its foreign policy. Sri Lanka would follow an equidistant foreign policy. Neutrality would be the whole mark,

42 trees felled; Ambagamuwa PS Chairman - a law unto himself ! Unjust enrichment via natural resources

Ambagamuwa Pradesha Sabha (PS) Chairman Jayasanka Perera was allegedly accused of haphazardly felling 42 trees prior to widening Diyagala – Nallatanniya road without informing any state institute. We reported on this in the Daily Mirror recently.

It’s freezing in USA - a tale of two countries - EDITORIAL

A series of devastating storms which unleashed frigid Arctic temperatures on Texas has killed around 47 people and left at least 2.7 million households....

Politicos clash over Crudia Zeyla-nica, united by Astra Ze-neca

In reality and quite obviously, our people’s representatives of both sides of the divide are historically famous for rising in unison on a common stand.....

UNHRC is used as an instrument by certain global powers instigated by Tamil diaspora – Dr. Sarath Weerasekara

The United Nation’s Human Rights Council (UNHRC) meets for its regular sessions today (22) in Geneva. At the month long sessions, the UNHRC.....

The Man Behind Moves to Form the “BJP” in Sri Lanka

The flower bud is the accredited electoral symbol of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) which is ruling Sri Lanka. However, the image of that flower bud resembles the lotus flower bud. In fact, a lot of lotus buds are used to decorate platforms of the SLPP known in popular parlance as the “pohottuwa” party.

UNHRC: An acid test for Lankan diplomacy

The government seems to have given up hopes of adopting a consensual resolution with the Core Group which has been preparing a resolution on Sri Lanka at the next session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) which is to begin on Monday.

Social justice in the digital economy

Social justice is a vital dimension of our social lives and also our spiritual lives. Many independent analysts are hopeful that the United States’ new President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will work fast and effectively not only to end white racist supremacist extremism or terrorism as we saw on January 6 but also to bring about racial equality and social justice first in the US and then hopefully in most countries of the free wor

A woman’s courage in a khaki jungle - EDITORIAL

There was a time when Sri Lanka was known as a country of missed opportunities. The last time critics said that profoundly was when the Government of Sri Lanka....

World summit for a global war against COVID-19 pandemic

As nations rich and poor struggle to come out of the pandemic pit pinning their hopes on hurriedly tested vaccines approved only for emergency use....

TNA regrets crimes committed in the name of the Tamil people: Sumanthiran

The human rights issue in Sri Lanka will take center-stage when the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) meets in Geneva for its 46th Session from February 22 to March 23.

Modi’s remarks on Tamils set the cat among the pigeons

The Government has articulated over and again that its foreign policy will be neutral and non-aligned. However, it is now challenging for the regime to be true to such a policy since the major powers with interests in the region have made it almost unworkable in a practical sense. The absence of a cohesive policy regardless of the change of governments has made matters worse.

Concerns of a nation before UNHRC sessions

In February valentine’s day parties were canceled and people were told to remain at home. Sri Lanka also braces itself to face a new variant of the COVID-19 pandemic which is said to have originated in England and now present in this island nation. But Sri Lankans who have their ‘thinking caps on’ are living life low key. This is because of the upcoming UNHRC sessions in March which could put Sri Lanka in a spot of bother if resolutions are passe

COVID-Deaths: Yes to Burials Cremated Again

This turn of events, which would have been the cause for much relief especially to the Muslim community, took place in no less a forum than Parliament with no less a person than Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa taking centre-stage.

Let’s call the bluff of India and the Indophiles

A few years ago, the Indian Minister of Home Affairs Amit Shah, who also served as the President of the Bharatiya Janatha Party (BJP) from 2014 to 2020 in a conversation over the party’s victories in several States is reported to have quipped ‘Nepal and Sri Lanka are still left’.

‘India is our closest friend’: PM - EDITORIAL

India has at various times in the past and in the not too distant past proved to be a valuable ally of our country. In fact our Prime Minister....

‘The Half’: The muffled story of Shakthika Sathkumara

Shakthika Sathkumara was acquitted and released by the Magistrate’s Court of Polgahawela last week, as the Attorney General, at long last....

Power Sector: New theatre of big power rivalry

The resolution of the East Container Terminal saga with a Cabinet decision that the Sri Lanka Ports Authority would retain 100% ownership and control....

The mess in handling COVID deaths

The recent newspaper reports show what a messy situation prevails in hospitals in handling the victims of COVID-19 and the lack of empathy towards the relatives of the victims. An article in the latest issue of our sister paper, The Sunday Times explains the cruel treatment by some employees of some hospitals who solicit bribe from relatives for handling the bodi

GoSL may ask UNHRC to set up data base on war time dead

Since there could not be “accountability” in the true sense of the term without credible evidence of culpability, data will first have to be collected scientifically and transparently, Dr.Gunaratna argued

How this govt. made SL weaker abroad, divided and fragile at home?

Last week, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa assured in Parliament that the government would soon permit the burial of Muslims who died of Covid-19. “The dead will be allowed to be buried,” he quipped in response to a question by the Sa

Copyright issues, TV rights in sports broadcasting and streaming

Copyright in its culture is constructed to deal with author’s supremacy and branches out to the two prone claim viz economic rights, and moral rights

No permanent friends or enemies, only interests - EDITORIAL

Diplomacy is the art or skill of managing international relations -typically the art of dealing with foreign governments in a sensitive and tactful way.

Burma and Ceylon in 1962: Why military succeeded there and failed here?

Three times Prime Minister U Nu’s democratic Union Parliament was overthrown by General Ne Win on March 2, 1962.

Tamil “P2P” Protest of 2021 and the Tamil “Satyagraha” of 1961

The “Pottuvil to Poligandy” (P2P) Protest that ended last week was a watershed moment in the political history of Sri Lankan Tamils.