COVID-19: Are we missing a life lesson here?

The growing concerns about the Coronavirus Pandemic and the irresponsible manner in which some citizens have behaved have given us a window to check out the mentality of the islanders in general.

NEVER ENOUGH!

In our world today, enough is never enough!!! So many reasons for lack of satisfaction – mainly due to coveting what other people have, it is sadly a very deadly trend in Sri Lanka...

When the due process of law is in the ICU, militarization in Vaccination…

A time of crisis with the spectre of a common enemy, real or imagined, gives the ideal opportunity to roll up civil liberties to authorities.

If we did not have our rice stocks..... - EDITORIAL

Calamities and crises have the ability to add rationality and sanity to otherwise capricious human mind. They awaken men to the reality...

Let’s cope with the restrictions to curb COVID-19

The curfew imposed to maintain social distancing or physical distancing to curb the spread of COVID-19, the latest version of the disease caused by the coronavirus family has started to bite the entire nation, irrespective of race, religion or political party the people belong to. The economy made up of large scale corporations to that of those doing odd jobs have been hard hit.

Seeking accurate info during a plague

We have seen people behave in various ways amidst the COVID-19 situation. On one extreme are those who think this is an over-reaction, generally considering the prevailing movement restrictions a nuisance to be subverted. On the other are those in high levels of distress getting ready for impending doom. This is a situation that is constantly evolving. Undoubtedly, this creates a sense of uncertainty and confusion about what to do and not. There

Too much religion is making it hard to fight the pandemic

At times of personal and collective tragedy, people find solace in religion; some seek divine blessings, others ponder the impermanence of the life, many others do both. Invocation of religion could be just symbolic for more earthly folks, but it could also be cathartic to some others. Now, a God-defying pandemic is re

Democracy in crisis: avoiding dictatorship

The President on March 2, 2020 by Gazette Extraordinary No. 2165/8 legitimately dissolved Parliament from midnight and fixed April 25, 2020 as the date for the General Election. While the proclamation was legal, it was poorly thought out because it was made well after the COVID-19 outbreak had begun. Passengers at many international airports like Kuwait were being tested for fever before letting them ent

COVID-19, vulnerability and false certainties - EDITORIAL

On March 3, 2020, coronavirus or COVID-19 made its first appearance in Sri Lanka when a foreign national tested coronavirus positive.

Cyber trauma is very real

Most of us are now forced to work from home. This is nothing new, at least to some of us, who are used to working from anywhere at any time.

Mirusuvil  Massacre: Accused pardoned; no reparations for victims’ families, say rights groups

Twenty two movements working on issues relating to civic rights, human rights, women’s rights, and a journalist activist organisation have jointly issued a statement expressing....

Is Sri Lanka ready for Covid-19 effect?

This analysis focuses not on the COVID-19, but on its effect, the author wishes to address a significant thinking gap that is emerging whilst policy makers locally and globally are battling the virus and its immediate aftereffects.

‘Flattening the curve’ needs well-networked local interventions

One of the best explanations on COVID-19 I heard was by Dr. Sumedha Jayasena, a Sri Lankan bio-technologist resident in California. His explanation was scientific and covered all aspects of the virus

WHO warns smokers face higher risk of COVID-19

It has been documented that smokers incur a two to four fold increased risk of invasive pneumococcal lung disease, a disease associated with high mortality. The influenza risk is two-fold higher and more severe in smokers compared to nonsmokers. In the case of tuberculosis, smokers have a two-fold increased risk of contracting the infection and a four-fold increased mortality.

Covid pandemic: We work together or sink together

In times of crisis, selfishness exacerbates the disaster. A person cannot stand guard to the money he has stacked in a secret room when the fire is engulfing him from all sides or the flood water level is rising. He should leave everything and try to save his life. At a time when the coronavirus pandemic is making science and knowledge appear primitive and pathetically and pathologically inadequate, the rich nations’ focus should not be on measur

Can Sri Lanka survive a ‘Cassandra Crossing’?

The present COVID-19 pandemic affecting Sri Lanka among other countries draws parallels with the disaster thriller made in 1976 titled ‘The Cassandra Crossing.’

To all healthcare providers we say, ‘Thank You’

The number of COVID-19 patients In Sri Lanka had increased to 101 as of Tuesday with the possibility of these numbers increasing by the time this edition is uploaded into the system.

Prioritise the poor and vulnerable!

Ignorance breeds fear. Fear nudges emotion to trump reason. The world didn’t know about Corvid-19 a few months ago. The world still knows very little. The little that is known is scary.

One month preparedness to contain coronavirus

As the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, engulfs the world with its cruel tentacles, governments all over are in a dilemma on how to best deal with it. It is a reasonable dilemma because no government in the world has dealt with a health crisis of this magnitude in recent history. Sri Lanka is no exception.

Is Taiwan’s impressive response to COVID-19 possible in Sri Lanka?

Taiwan has never forgotten the nightmare of a 2003 epidemic - SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) which devastated many East Asian metropolises. In its wake, Taiwan along with few others doubled down on preparing for any future crisis.

How Will the TNA fare at Parliamentary Election?

The deadline for the 2020 Parliamentary Elections nominations scheduled for April 25 ended at noon on Thursday, March 19th

Suppression to mitigate Covid-19: Govt’s approach is right It should stick to it to the end

From Oceania to the Americas, country after country is grinding to a halt by the coronavirus global pandemic. Less than a month ago, US President Donald Trump....

We need a united front to fight COVID-19 - EDITORIAL

We, Sri Lankans have fought among ourselves so many times when we should have been united. Subsequent to receiving Independence....

COVID-19 Greatest risk to elders

We are living in unheard-of times. According to updates, as of 10:18 am, Mar 18, the COVID-19 pandemic is escalating rapidly with 200,071 confirmed cases and 8,009 deaths in 152 countries.

SL caught between Attitudes and Virus

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa while addressing the nation on Tuesday in view of the current panic over the sudden upsurge in the number of COVID-19 patients in the country said that the Royal-Thomian Big Match organisers had gone ahead with the cricket....

Sandwiched between religion and law - EDITORIAL

At a time when COVID 19 is threatening to destabilise the country the various ways in which Sri Lanka’s citizens have responded to this pandemic have become topics of much discussion.

The deeper message of coronavirus: Unity and just world order

As the coronavirus pandemic spreads in all directions putting governments into a spin, the crisis is as much a time for reflection as it is for concerted efforts to find treatments, vaccines and ways and means to control the disease.

Violence in State-managed Universities

As you know, violence in state universities have been escalating in recent times. What we saw last week at University of Sri Jayawardenapura (where the young person is still battling for life in the ICU) is one grave atrocity amongst many, which have been taking place in all universities. Due to the serious escalation of violence in universities in the past several years, the University Grants Commission steered a study during 2018 to identify

Postponement of election

Coronavirus or COVID-19 , as defined by the World Health Organisation, is taking its toll on the entire world by the day. The countries around the globe resort to action after action in succession to prevent community spread of the disease that has already claimed 8000 lives around the globe. Sri Lanka is fighting the disease with a host of measures such as the adoption of quarantine measures for possible patients, the closure of the airport for

A heart-note to Italy

Italy. As of now, the spread of the contagion is 250 times higher than anywhere else in the world. It is 120 and 56 times higher than in Iran and China respectively. The stories coming from that country are heartbreaking. It’s not as though situations in China and Iran, for example, were of an order that wouldn’t stir the heart. Put it down to the way global media operates. When the coronavirus first surfaced in China, there was palpable smirki