Shaping up: Undoing of a Democracy

In Sri Lanka, anything unlawful we are caught doing, can be “shaped up.” It is the “Asian Way” we say proudly, indirectly alluding to upholding the law as the “Western Way.” In that self-congratulation we forget....

152 million children enslaved in child labour - EDITORIAL

Sincerity is the greatest quality in human beings and it is children who have it in abundance. Children are devastatingly honest. That is why religious leaders have warned us and the punishment that await those who abuse children.

Gulf Crisis: A Sri Lankan perspective

America’s trade war with China seems to be entering a new phase with the Huawei ban in full force and Trump administration mulling further tariffs on Chinese imports. It is causing China....

Singling out of Rishad Bathiudeen as a political target

The orchestrated political campaign by the Mahinda Rajapaksa-led opposition in association with sections of the Buddhist clergy and mainstream media against three prominent Muslim politicians has ostensibly succeeded. The said aim of the campaign was to secure the dismissal, resignation and/or arrest of two Provincial Governors and a Cabinet Minister. Eastern Province Governor M.L.A.M. Hizbullah and Western Province Governor Azath Salley have bo

This Poson let us focus on other-centredness

The week-long Poson ceremonies come to a climax tomorrow with tens of thousands of devotees congregating in Anuradhapura for religious observances mainly in Mihintale and Thanthirimale. It was to Mihintale that the Buddha-Dhamma was brought by Arahat Mahinda and Buddhist historians say the reigning King Devanampiyatissa was on an animal hunting expedition when Arahat Mahinda proclaimed, “Stop Tissa, do not kill”.

Let’s build a violence-free society in this thrice-blessed Island

H C P Bell, former Director of Archaeology, says, “Mihintale”, is the perfect sanctuary for the sons of Buddha that they could find throughout the length & breadth of Ceylon”

Candidates on racial platforms would never bring sanity

Last Tuesday, the Cabinet of Ministers did not meet for their weekly sessions. Reason being the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) constituted to investigate Easter Sunday attacks.

In pursuit of a perceived enemy

Given the questions posed by almost all non-Muslims, except for a few on the mass resignation by the Muslim Ministers, State Ministers and a Deputy Minister on June 3 in the wake of Parliamentarian Athureliye Rathana Thera’s....

Returning to pray in a revered church - EDITORIAL

The much revered St.Anthony’s Church in Kochchikade was reopened to the public on June 12 (Wednesday) underscoring the fact that the Catholic community in the country was able to reap the benefits of patience, a trait which its members chose to nurture instead of hatred.

De-radicalization a forgotten challenge in countering extremism

Introducing a new legislation to control terrorism has become a subject matter of debate in the wake of the radical Islamist wave that hit Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday killing over 254 people and wounding many.

What on earth is happening to Sri Lanka?

The crisis waiting to happen during the past few days in May fizzled out into what turned out to be an anti-climax with the Ven. Athurelue Tathana Thera calling off his much-hyped ‘fast unto death’ after Minister Rishad Bathiudeen, the two provincial governors M.L.A.M. Hizbullah and Asath Salley resigned from their posts. Although the fasting m

‘Moderate’ is a convenient garb for the pernicious

We don’t have to listen to the not-so-veiled threats of ex-Governor of the Eastern Province, Mahabood Hizbullah to understand that there is a real and abiding danger of a kind of terrorism this country did not know before Easter Sunday. And yet, the noises made in English, in and out of the media (mainstream and social) are almost exclusively directed at the majority community, the Sinhala Buddhists.

Fresh crisis between Executive and Legislature

Normally, the Ministers get a communiqué from the Presidential Secretariat every Friday convening them for the regular Cabinet meeting on Tuesday. There was no such communication this time, but the Ministers anxiously waited till Monday only to learn that President Maithripala Sirisena seemed serious about his warning that he would not convene the regular Cabinet meetings unless the government

Modi visit Why ambitious India wants peace in Sri Lanka

India’s reelected Premier Narendra Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka on Sunday (June 9) happened at a time of tension in the island. But the Indian statesman was all focused in achieving what he wanted and passing the message that Sri Lanka could look to India in its fight against terrorism. The shrewd politician he is, Modi sent the mess

Why are some mute? All 225 must go! Navin’s lone call for sanity is a ‘voice from the future’

Finally, we heard a saner, saner than usual, voice in the midst of national insanity. It was an honest voice in a riotous cacophony of dishonesty; an urgent message in a country searching for immediate action and an apolitical behaviour in a political world. Honesty is a very rare commodity in the political marketplace today. When the general public are demanding honesty of their

AFTERMATH OF EASTER SUNDAY TERROR

The conundrum of happenings, people who are guilty, not guilty, tried and discharged, sent on bail, conflicting opinions on what has taken place; what is taking place and even about what will take place; is, to say the least, startling and even unbelievable in some instances. The people, especially those who survived the murderous attack, are mostly still in limbo, some even unable

vulnerability of the Sinhala language

Supposedly the language spoken by nearly 16 million Sri Lankans, Sinhala does not fall into the category of the world’s most endangered languages. Still, being geographically limited to the island nation of Sri Lanka, the Sinhala language, unlike its sibling Tamil, runs the risk of being disappeared faster than many smaller languages with greater geographical spread.

Conceding to communalist pressure; the ruination of a nation

I am not a Buddhist, at least in the conventional sense; i.e. that my Birth certificate does not state ‘Buddhism’ in the slot where the topic ‘Religion’ is to be filled. But the little Buddhism that I know tells me that it is a great sin to take a life just because something you demand is not given to you. For example, I cannot go to a job interview and threaten the Board that if I am not

National Security needs no political sanction

The reports on the actions by politicians, including the leaders of the country and the officials responsible for national security, with regard to the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks reveal how irresponsible they had been in respect of their duties towards the country. Their actions even after the disaster leading up to now, vindicate the point. All stakeholders seem to atte

Sri Lanka’s Easter Tragedy 2019 Sad sign of national contradiction

Brazen contradictions both in national politics and the exercise of the franchise as well as in civic life have marked the tragic national history of the Sri Lankan nation with vengeance during the last post-Independence 70-year span. The hartals of the late fifties with the Sinhala Only policy brought in the first taste of modern ethnic tensions. Then came the unsteady political situations of the sixties prefaced by nation

Right Wing surge in India’s Left Wing stronghold

The Eastern Indian State of West Bengal, which has been a stronghold of the secular Centre-Left/Left Wing parties from the time India gained independence in 1947, is now experiencing a non-secular Right Wing surge. There is every possibility of the Right Wing “Hindutwite” Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) capturing power in West Bengal through the next State Assembly elections due in 2021. It was the April-May 2019 parliamentary elec

Understanding the problem between Sinhalese and Muslims

All conflicts stem from one underlying problem that is the distribution of wealth and access to resources. If this is a universal issue, then the Sinhala-Muslim animosity that exists in the Sri Lankan context must also be explainable in terms of wealth and perceptions of wealth. While at a surface level this may seem doubtful, on closer analysis the “inherent”nature of this ethnic divide proves mor

A ‘STATE-LESS’ Nation Trapped ‘Behind Bars’

As we look around our environs, it’s useful to keep in mind that security has moved into a lot of areas of our lives. It’s particularly important for the places that we go for refuge and shelter and to pray also afford the similar security procedures as other places we visit frequently.

A CLEAR MESSAGE To The NATION!

The timely intervention of the religious dignitaries of our country in the extremely burning issue regarding the proposed agreements with the USA brings in some consolation amidst the prevailing desperation.

In a war of elephants, the ants get squeezed - EDITORIAL

Ever since Donald Trump became the US President, as well as during his presidential campaign, he raised the spectre of an aggressive China building its military, naval and air power and the threat China pose to both US interests and the interests of neighbouring states in the region.

World’s Press calls on UK to address Press Freedom concerns

The Board of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN- IFRA), meeting in Glasgow, Scotland on June 3, 2019 on the occasion of the 71st World News Media Congress, 26th World Editors Forum and 3rd Women....

Mass Resignation of Nine Govt Ministers and Muslim Politics Undercurrents

Sri Lanka once again hurtling towards another orgy of anti-Muslim violence. Buddhist monk Ven. Athureliya Rathana Thera who is also a Member of Parliament was on a ‘fast unto death’ in the vicinity of Dalada Maligawa(Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic) hallowed by Buddhists in Sri Lanka and abroad.

Make the ocean great again: Bigger role by girls and women

Decades ago, the famous singing duo Nina and Frederik wrote an immortal song relating to the ocean. It goes like this, “Listen to the ocean, echoes of a million sea shells, forever it’s in motion, moving to a rhythmic, unwritten music that’s played eternally”.

Defeat extremist ideologies to win “war on terrorism”

For two different reasons, both Sri Lanka and the USA (including its allies) should be concerned about the latest terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka. For the USA, it was yet another warning that it’s time it changed its strategies.

IT’s now a “Sinhala-Buddhist” Theocratic State

“Today (June 3) is the most wretched day after Prime Minister Bandaranaike tore the B-C Pact on April 9, 1958 giving into pressure from a few extremist Buddhist monks,” Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera....