LOOKING BACK

Looking back, reviewing all that has gone before and all that is ahead, how prepared are we to face the stark realities that we have to??? We are facing economic issues of alarming proportions, poverty is widespread; the country is unable to repay the loans that have been raised and as a result, the cost of living has skyrocketed!!!

Facebook content moderators in SL paid US$ 4 per hour

A year ago, the headline in the Guardian story I co-wrote read “Sri Lanka blocks social media as deadly violence spreads.” Since the block a lot has been written on the pros and cons of the move. There has also been a lot more attention on the part of governments and Facebook to quell the use of the platform for the spread of inflammatory content. There have been at least

What does freedom mean to you?

Tomorrow one of the world’s leading television channels, the Cable News Network (CNN) marks ‘My Freedom day’—a day long, student-driven event to raise awareness of modern slavery. According to CNN, it’s often hidden from sight, but modern slavery is a global problem. Among its many victims are at least 10 million children.

stand up for survival of democracy

We experienced the very worst of time in our somewhat turbulent political history, with the constitutional coup when the country was plunged into chaos and losses to the economy on all fronts.

CHINA’S MODUS OPERANDI TO DOMINATE ASIAN REGION AS FEARED BY SOME?

In a previous article titled “Has Kenya Too Fallen for China’s Debt Trap?” I have highlighted the challenges faced with China centric development projects. It was in hope of opening the eyes of those in developing countries, especially those in the South Asian...

UNHRC: Partisan approach would not help - EDITORIAL

Who is going to represent Sri Lanka at the 40th Regular Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) which is in session in Geneva? Do two delegations set to go to Geneva to attend the session on behalf of the Government?

Mannar Mass grave, Karannagoda case and how the due process would vindicate the Sri Lankan State

My last week’s column has caused some contention. Certain things need to be clarified. Two former security forces commanders, Lt. Gen Daya Ratnayake, former commander of Army, and Admiral Tisara Samarasinghe....

Northern Province’s Economic Development Framework

´Economic Development Framework for a Northern Province Master Plan´, is a study commissioned by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka and carried out by a team of seven members with competence in relevant fields and knowledge of post-war conditions in the province.

Chaotic Kandy Traffic

The Kandy Municipal Council is responsible for the chaotic Traffic situation in Kandy Town. Ten years ago, an order was passed by the former Chief Justice Sarath N. Silva, following a report submitted by a committee of Dons of the Universtiy of Peradeniya about a one-way traffic plan to be implemented by the Kandy Municipality.

Venezuela: a victim of mismanagement, imperialist design - EDITORIAL

Venezuela is a country with the largest deposits of unrefined oil resources in the world. Yet it has the world’s highest rate of inflation -- a staggering 2,600% last year -- according to recently released figures.

Baghouz to Balkot: Complexities of Counter Terrorism in 21st Century

On March 1, Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) made of a loose coalition of Kurdish, Arab, Turkmenistan and Armenian militias all united to defeat Jihadists and their common enemy the Islamic State (IS) commenced their push to take the last IS stronghold...

Is Mahinda Playing Fair By Gotabhaya In The Presidential Candidacy Issue?

Is former President Mahinda Rajapaksa playing fair by his younger brother Gotabaya as far as the presidential election candidate issue is concerned? This question has popped up in the minds of many observers of Sri Lanka’s political landscape in recent times. Although the Rajapaksa brothers present an outward image of monolithic unity, the political grapevine has hummed many times about strong political differences existing within the ‘Kurakkan

Criticism of Israel is misrepresented as Anti-Semitism

After the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in AD 70 the Jews were thrust into the outer world - many into Arab countries, later to become Muslim, where they were extended protection, and later into the Roman and then Christian world where they were accepted for many centuries. There were no pogroms until the Middle Ages and then they were centuries apart.

Treat women and girls with respect - EDITORIAL

At any level of society, the decision-making process is flawed when it lacks the feminine qualities and characteristics such as patience, resilience and inner courage. Across the world, this is a widely-held viewpoint, though some male chauvinists – downgraded and degraded in the modern age -- still promote male domination and abuse of power. Unfortunately, since January 2016, the United States President Donald Trump has given encouragement to ma

Breakdown of discipline at academic institutions - EDITORIAL

The education sector in the island is providing some of the most shocking news these days, much to the concerns of worried parents.

Afghanistan’s peace challenge

After 18 years of military occupation, the United States appears to be serious about withdrawing from Afghanistan, a country which is known as the graveyard of invaders. In the past, Alexander the Great, Genghis Khan, Great Britain, the imperial Russia and the Soviet Union all failed in Afghanistan.

Leave Budget aside: Get back to basics

Is Budget 2019 about addressing our problems? Are we talking about the Budget in terms of future development? Are we serious about future prosperity and stability with freedom? If that is the direction of this Budget 2019 presented by Finance Minister Samaraweera, why then are we so impatient in selecting a winnable Presidential candidate to head the next Government from 2020?

President’s devolution committee: Just another committee?

Some strange turns of events have been taking place in politics these days. Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa has expressed keenness in scrapping the Executive Presidency all of a sudden. He and his loyalists have been arguing against the scrapping of the system, claiming that it would pave the way for the bifurcation of the country.

Karannagoda, ‘Rule of Law’ and the Season of Silliness in Geneva

Sri Lanka’s reconciliation efforts are hounded by the ghosts of that arbitrary past, Ranga Jayasuriya claims in his column titled ‘Adm. Karannagoda trial would not satiate LTTErump, but upholds rule of law.’ What is the ‘that’ of the claim? Jayasuriya’s contention is based on the possible trial-at-bar of formerNavy Commander Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda who is accused of

suspects in custody need not end up in the mortuary

While deploring the abduction and the killing of the two young Rathgama businessmen – 36-year old Manjula Asela Kumara and 31-year-old Rasin Chinthaka -- allegedly in police custody, today’s editorial also vehemently condemns the custodial deaths or killings of all suspects -- whether they are arrested on charges of drug smuggling or peddling or on charges of criminal

Budget prepared with Presidential Election in mind

The Government, in the presentation of the 2019 Budget, does not appear to have abandoned its liberal economic policies, but has been cautious enough not to burden people too much in the realisation of its ideals. To cushion the current hardships, it announced a few concessions too.

Can educational authorities out-think tuition masters?

Policing the Police: Challenge for newly face-lifted Police Commission

Some say that the Police have gone to the dogs. Without being so harsh, yet being realistic, we would euphemistically admit that some dogs have got in to the Police force. They are wreaking havoc, abusing power, desecrating the hallowed police uniform, wagging tail at politicos and making people lose their trust in the very concept of law and order. Despite measures

the importance of being imran khan

South Asia’s ‘super powers’ -- India and Pakistan -- are at their throats once again. Both nations are nuclear powers, which could lead to a miscalculated nuclear war. And once again the flash-point is Kashmir, with both countries claiming sole ownership of the disputed region.

THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONUNDRUM

The government-led initiative to introduce a new constitution is being met with wide and conflicting reactions from civil society. Those opposing warn a de facto federalist structure of Government, while advocators insist that it fulfills a long-felt necessity for a “People’s Constitution”. The two facts are politically divided, and there seems to be some merit in both sides of

Can we put right a tarnished human rights record?

Sri Lanka remains a concerned nation these days due to the simmering tensions between India and Pakistan and the upcoming scheduled visit to Geneva where the island’s government representatives have to show progress in adopting human rights resolutions.

THE END IS NIGH!!!

From what we read in every religious book and on the Internet, the extinction of the world is drawing nigh!!! Niall McCarthy on the Internet says “Massive Insect decline threatens Collapse of Nature!!!’ According to the first global scientific review, the world’s insects are hurtling down the path to extinction, threatening a “catastrophic collapse of nature’s ecosystems!!!” The rate of

Why SL should reject ultra-rightwing politics

Global considerations are ever present. A trend towards nationalism in Europe and the United States of America is visible. Narrow-minded politicians are busy making more and more promises to gullible constituents expecting that they would, at least in the short term, overwhelm the more sophisticated arguments for compromises and accommodations on reconciliation

Devolution: Leaders should be clear

The subject of Devolution of Power has come to the fore again. It has been reported that a committee has been appointed by President Maithripala Sirisena to formulate a new set of proposals on the devolution of power to replace the current Provincial Council system. But is anyone confident that it would succeed? Does anybody believe that at least the President is confident that his committee would find a lasting solution to the ethnic problem, th

Adm. Karannagoda trial would not satiate LTTE rump, but upholds rule of law

Sri Lanka’s effort to find a closure to the victims of the protracted terrorist war is obstructed by two ideological extremes, each feeding into the agenda of the other. On one extreme end of the scale, Sinhala ultra-nationalists and electoral calculations of Southern politics have opposed almost all on-going and past initiatives to prosecute military officials implicated in even the most blatant human rights violations. Similarly, self-serving m