The silent, suffering masses

The burning question today seems to be transport!!! The trains and buses in our country are indeed a sorry sight.

Pistol-packing mamma and spoilt political brats Hog Limelight

There were a few more shocks in store for Sri Lankans, still reeling after the devastation, destruction and murder caused by attacks in Ampara and Digana incited by racists of the worst possible kind. 

Filtering hate speech, not an easy task

As in the case of the political and economic problems faced by the government, it is grappling with the issue of maintaining communal harmony in the country. It was clearly manifested during the recent anti-Muslim riots that even the state of emergency and the curfews did not function properly. The Government and the law 

Impunity: A cat closing its eyes drinking milk

The title from my school days refers to a cat thinking that when it sees no one, it is safe. Likewise, our rulers seem to think that blocking out Facebook, WhatsApp, etc. ensures that no one can see us or our friends bashing our Muslim brethren and enjoy that barbaric moment as we act out our Mleccha (barbarian) instincts. With firm action, the riots should have been stopped on day one. Instead, social media showed the police, the STF no less, la

Power does not bring happiness, sharing and caring do - EDITORIAL

We all wish to be happy but sadly many of us are not aware of how we could be happy. Most of the people most of the time are saddened by the delusion they could be happy by indulging in luxuries or extravagance or....

CASE FOR A FACE BOOK ‘SOCIAL MEDIA OMBUDSMAN’

Social media has been a medium of communication on computer mediated technology created to sharing information with individuals, clusters, and social groups, cheap, accessible and fast, until the ground breaking....

Sri Lanka confronts Weaponized Social Media

The first social media blackout to be implemented in Sri Lanka since the inception of Social media platforms in 2005 just ended last week. The sudden and swift social media blackout was a response to halt and mitigate the spread....

THE ILLUSORY EXECUTIVE PRESIDENCY

The near hysterical response to the local election results, by parliamentarians and the media alike, demonstrated an unfortunate lack of understanding of the Constitution of our country. This was evident especially regarding the powers...

Cabinet and meritocracy Meritocracy Must for good governance

A leading newspaper, which is 100 years old, quotes in its March 13 edition on page 5 that a minister had said that “Scientific Cabinet reshuffle after President returns.”

That elusive FDI

Attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as much as possible seems to be one of the key strategies adopted by the Yahapalanaya Government for overall economic development.  

Let’s learn to be content with what we have

Finland is the world’s happiest country according to the latest annual survey conducted by the United Nations and most people may be surprised to know the reasons why Finland is the happiest in a world that is getting more selfish and self-centred compounded with other vices.   

Russian Presidential Election on March 18

The seemingly eternal President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has an iron grip on his nation and a foreign policy to match. A large majority of Russians give him their support. He will win re-election.  

What a shame! Human slavery continues

In today’s world -- widely considered a global village with instant mass communication, the marvels of modern technology and unpredictable or unbelievable possibilities in the oncoming era of artificial intelligence -- it is shocking to know that there are about 50 million human slaves, with at least 10 million of them being children.   

Rise of Xi and the Asian dream

China’s President Xi Jinping is now a virtual leader for life after the Communist Party on Sunday removed the presidential term limits from the constitution.

No Political will, No Answer to Unrests

The very blame-game among the politicians, especially between the United National Party (UNP) and the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) on the recent attacks against Muslims is an indication that Sri Lankan politicians are not serious about any kind of ethnic strife, leave alone finding solutions to them.

Cornered to Unite

Post-war Sri Lanka has by now gone through five violent anti-Muslim orgies, orchestrated by extremist Sinhala Buddhist groups-from Aluthgama-Beruwala riots in June 2014, through Mahiyangana, Gintota, Ampara and the still smouldering Digana-Theldeniya savagery in the Kandy District.

MAN’S INHUMANITY TO MAN

There is no other country in the world where ‘MAN’S INHUMANITY TO MAN’ is more explicit, more brazenly displayed, than in this BUDDHIST COUNTRY of ours!!!  

Time-tested bond of Sinhala-Muslim Friendship

The Muslims of Sri Lanka, since ancient times have been in peaceful coexistence with the other communities of the Island and has proved to be an integral and inseparable component of the Sri Lankan society.

For Harmony Plus - A Solid Foundation

Today we see the necessity for social harmony, as never before. Unless some meaningful and out of the box action is taken soon, our beautiful country is faced with doom. In this regard, I humbly present a recipe, which is likely to help achieve the cherished goal of a harmonious society, and in addition boost our economy as well. In this regard, our National (commemorative) holidays could be re-fashioned and utilized to reach the goal of har

When the dots are connected you get a dead cat

The term is attributed to Lynton Crosby, a political strategist who has managed campaigns of right-of-centre parties in several countries. Boris Johnson, who employed Crosby during London mayoral elections explains the term thus:  

Consumer Rights: Only rites, how much we are going wrong

All people are consumers in different degrees and therefore World Consumer Rights Day today is important for us to become more aware of our rights and responsibilities in bringing about a just and fair society.   

Threat to food security in Sri Lanka

When the father of our nation D.S. Senanayake went ahead with his ambitious plans for farmers as Minister of Agriculture in the State Council of Ceylon, he was met with resistance by cynics.

Sarath Fonseka Dreaded by Rajapaksas And feared by everyone

There was so much of hope, at least amongst the ordinary folks, that Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka would be appointed Minister of Law and Order.

ATTACK OF THE ISLAMOPHOBES: ARMY CHIEF HITS THE TARGET

There is a potential threat of domestic terrorism of a new type. The excellent choice for Minister of Law and Order, Ranjith Madduma Bandara, and the Defence authorities under President Sirisena and Ruwan Wijewardene must coordinate to face this new, existential threat.   

Will enough be done to erase the scars of the Kandy turmoil?

The ethnic violence mainly in Kandy District and sparsely in several other districts has subsided, if not ceased. But the scars will certainly remain for a long time. Now the authorities including Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe have given details of damages to the lives and the properties incurred by the violence while announcing the details of their preparations for the reparations including paying compensations to the victims who were main

Have we learnt a lesson from Digana ?

Last week, when I wrote about the looming danger of fringe Sinhala Buddhist extremism, it was all quiet in Kandy, at least on the surface. But, those who were privy to local intelligence should have known about simmering tension in the area after the death of a Sinhalese lorry driver who succumbed to injuries after being assaulted by a group of drunken Muslim youth. The government as usual did nothing to sooth the unrest. Only after Digana was bu

The patience of Rajapaksas; Response to Nalin de Silva

This is in reply to Dr. Nalin de Silva’s interview to Kelum Bandara of Daily Mirror, dated March 6, 2018. Dr. de Silva raises various issues here, but I wish to respond to him only on two counts: Basil Rajapaksa caused Maithripala Sirisena’s defection to the opposition in the run up to the presidential elections in 2015 and Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) should have been formed before the general elections in August 2015. These tw

Media’s role in shaping int’l relations

The Governments across the world take decisions on international relations on the basis of a wide variety of inputs and considerations. Among the ingredients is domestic political pressure.Typically, political pressure is built up by the mass media. At times, such pressure is even initiated by the media.

With so many sun days, great potential for Lanka - EDITORIAL

With the government having virtually brought under control the ethnic tension and violence in some areas of the Kandy District, President Maithripala Sirisena....

The Worrisome Dominance of China; all hail Xi Dada

Start with politics. Xi Jingping has used his power to reassert the dominance of the Communist Party and of his own position within it. As part of a campaign against....