Doomsday clock dangerously close to midnight

Hours after this column was written and sent to the Daily Mirror yesterday, peace scientists and world elders gathered in Washington DC to announce how perilously close we are to a global disaster.

Media Must Honour Privacy - EDITORIAL

Artiste turned lawmaker Ranjan Ramanayake’s revelations about alleged corrupt activities of politicians and businessmen through his voice recordings have raised questions about privacy of individuals.

Continuing saga of the audio clips

With his interdiction on January 7, on the orders of acting Police Chief C.D. Wickramaratne; former CID Director SSP Shani Abeysekera became the first casualty in the sordid audio-clip saga.

Ranjan Ramanayake campaigner or attention seeker?

Lawmaker Ranjan Ramanayake has a way of bouncing back from hopeless situations. He made his critics sit up and take note when he highlighted on (Tuesday), during a fiery speech delivered in Parliament, certain issues ranging from MPs holding bar permits, drug trafficking, horse racing, match-fixing and a key name in the alleged bond scam offering him a bribe. The parliamentarian said that he has voice recordings from telephone conversations to pr

Hard battle for Sajith faction to secure UNP leadership

In politics, there are no permanent friends or enemies, nor are there permanent political alliances. Only interests remain, and alliances are formed as the situation demands to realise aspirations. This is exactly what Sri Lankans have been experiencing for the past few years.

Political culture is made of credibility gaps and complicities

Is Ranjan Ramanayake a hero or a villain? Depends on who you ask and depends on what you are talking about. If anything he has done or said causes embarrassment to someone or some political group then that person, his/her supporters or the party (as the case may be) would not cheer him. The relevant opponents might. There’s a lot of subjectivity in these Q&A exercises. The chain of events has thrown up some names. It has revealed some glaring f

A tale of two leaders

The many battles in the Sri Lanka political field at present underscores one prominent fact; it’s time for two seasoned campaigners to say adieu to politics.

Solution to Pea-Fowl menace in Sri Lanka

An Indian professor of Agriculture in Kerala, Mani Chellappan, who is known for his experiments on scaring away crop damaging birds and other animals has successfully experimented methods of scaring away birds including pea-fowls. This Kerala based academic has improved on the tried and tested method that uses polypropylene coated ribbons in the fields to drive the

Ranjan Tapes: Who writes the Script and who is the ultimate target?

As to what the final outcome of the fallout emanating from the 127,000 audio clips of phone conversations recorded by MP Ranjan Ramanayke, is a matter too delicate to cast any prediction. If the top rung of the government thought of them as an invincible weapon cometh the General elections in a few months and the exposures will be detrimental only to the UNP

BUILDING SOLIDARITY

“This is no time to talk of hedges and fields, or the beauties of any country. Sadness and fear and hate, how they well up in the heart and mind!!!” Delving into Alan Paton’s ‘Cry the Beloved Country’ we certainly do have to cry for our beloved country, the ignominy, the blatant disregard for truth and justice, the dauntless power struggle, the huge sums of money donated for the

Lahore High Court’s ruling in Musharraf case stemmed army-judiciary clash in Pakistan

The meandering six-year trial of Gen. (Rtd) Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan’s former military dictator-turned civilian President, for “high treason” has pitted the judiciary against the army in that country. However, the Lahore High Court’s order of January 13, setting aside Musharraf’s conviction by a Special Court has prevented an immediate head-on clash between the two pillars of the State, which will have destabilised Pakistan at a time when the c

Eventually, an outspoken President for Sri Lanka! - EDITORIAL

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa must be commended for his outspokenness in some cases compared to other leaders of the country including his brother and former President Mahinda Rajapaksas. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa d

Youth skills development way forward for a future-ready workforce

Sri Lanka has long been regarded as a model of a successful welfare state - yet it has for decades faced major challenges in providing employment and meeting the aspirations of youth.The World Bank, in one of its reports, quotes two reasons for youth unemployment in Sri Lanka. (1) Competing hypotheses of unemployment and (2) Inaccessibility of quality education and training. World Bank classifies the first reason

A place and a temple: Karangoda and Pothgul Viharaya

In 1156 AD, the third year of his reign, Parakramabahu I faced a revolt in Ruhunurata led by Sugala, whose son Manabharana had been defeated and vanquished by him. He directed two of his Generals, Damiladhikari Rakkha and Kacukinayaka, to take two routes to Ruhuna and subjugate the aspiring queen. Codrington speculates that the latter general, after suffering defeat

Ranja, Wad of Bubble Gum Spit Away by Leadership? Or a ‘Cow Boy’ who Herded Cattle?

Is Ranjan Ramanayake, a wad of bubble/chewing gum spit away by the leadership or an actor in a Hollywood‘Cow boy’ film of 1940s-50s, playing the role of a cattle herder on horseback on ranches in Texas and North America....

Political Triumph and Economic Morass

Within two months of winning the presidential election, the Rajapaksa Government is firmly on the path of entrenching its position in parliament with the upcoming polls. The UNP’s infighting....

Australia’s raging inferno; an ecological horror movie

While Sri Lankan media are feasting on the vicarious hobby of actor-turned politician Ranjan Ramanayake, a country that many Lankans dream of as a haven and their new home is burning.

The old order changeth, but is it for the better? - EDITORIAL

Recently, the media has been airing the ‘Ranjan tapes’, a collection of audio and visual recordings which outline the disintegration of respected institutions of justice and containing converstion bordering on the obscene and vulgar.

Dire warning to the warming world

The widely respected British naturalist Sir David Attenborough said yesterday it was “palpable nonsense” to suggest that Australia’s bushfire crisis had nothing to do with climate change as he warned “the moment of crisis” has arrived. In an interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the 93-year-old Sir David made the direct link between the ongoing bushfires and climate change. “As I speak, south-east Australia is on fire. Why? B

A Secular National Flag, A National Pledge and The National Anthem

By definition, a Muslim is a believer in Islam. Is it correct then, to say that while the majority of Arabs were Muslims, that all Muslims in the present day, are not Arab? Non-Arabs need not wear traditional Arab dresses.

Unity in diversity under a Sri Lankan identity

We now have a strict disciplinarian as our President. It is unlikely that the presidential form of governance would be abolished. Setting up an ‘Upper House’ to prevent or delay hasty legislation and having a restricted number of ministers would never happen.

English as the medium of modern education

We are glad that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa hit the nail on the head about the meaning of education. Not a promising opening sentence? I do not wish to get into a harangue on education but just want to say there is an alternative to the education modus operandi which we practise by and large for more than a century.

Will SL tourist industry perform in rap style? - EDITORIAL

Sri Lanka’s tourism industry is screaming for a shot in the arm and the present regime has heard this call loud and clear. We all know how the tourist industry was badly affected following the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings.

Hybrid warfare: No winners, no ceasefire

Mercifully, the tensions between Iran and the United States did not escalate into an all-out war. If they had gone to war, the consequences would have been disastrous not only to the region, but also to the whole world, including the US.

THE POVERTY OF PROTEST

I find it useful to distinguish between two kinds of radicalism; that which tries to eradicate the structural causes of social injustice and that which glosses over such causes and simplifies them, presenting a stark.....

Improving English Language proficiency

After opening the new session of parliament, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa made an announcement about his policy statement. He has stated that one of his policies will be to develop facilities at all schools to improve English language skills.

Why only Ranjan?

Many government politicians and supporters rightly claim that the alleged conversations between United National Party (UNP)MP Ranjan Ramanayake and certain police officers and judges would erode public.....

Family planning in Sri Lanka: A case of ensuring individual well-being

Forty-year-old Kavitha (pseudonym) was gripped by panic when she learnt she was pregnant for the sixth time. What made her most fearful was that she was ill-equipped to support and sustain yet another child...

Lose your integrity and you lose it all

The audio clips recovered from actor-turned politician, United National Party (UNP) MP Ranjan Ramanayake`s home at Madiwela have opened as it were the proverbial ‘can of worms’ if not having stirred a hornet’s nest, implicating various government officials including some in the Judiciary and the Police Department.

What is your preference, citizen: Pillow - talk or public concerns ?

Should public figures have private lives? This is probably a question that has been asked and answered countless times across time and space. A related question would be ‘can public figures have private lives?’ Again an old question but one to which the ‘possible’ response has and is becoming increasingly muted courtesy technological innovation and surveillance complexities that are hard to notice and even harder to keep track of.