QPresident Ranil Wickremesinghe appeared to have declined to entertain your request for a snap General Election. Won’t this lead to a rift between your Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) and the President? I am yet to present this idea to the President formally. When I meet him today, I will do it. I have mooted this idea now. Otherwise everybody is of the opinion that the Presidential Election should be conducted first. However, we won’t leave
Bill Clinton wrote a book titled, “Back to Work: Why We Need Smart Government for a Strong Economy” presenting page after page of intelligent suggestions on how the US can reduce its crippling debt, create new jobs, and reinvigorate its position in the global economy, emphasizing a return to forward-thinking initiatives. Barack Obama’s book, ‘A Promised Land,’ manages to avoid being ponderous, as might be expected, and is always pleasurable to re
Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s book ‘The Conspiracy to oust me from Presidency” which was launched recently did not evoke much interest or create any stir among the people as its name suggests to do. Nor did it reveal any hidden facts or details about any incident that would have contributed to his ouster. However, the book is said to have been sold like hot cake due to the curiosity about what it could have contained. Hence, unlike the c
On the 31th of this month Catholics and Christians of all denomination will celebrate Easter Sunday. The festival without a doubt brings to mind the Easter Sunday bombing of 2019. On Easter of 2019, terrorists exploded their deadly caches of explosives in three churches where Christians were celebrating what to the community was the most sacred of Christian festivals. Separately on the same day, in three five star hotels members of the same terr
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam(LTTE) organization fought the armed forces of Sri Lanka for 33 years in pursuance of its political goal of establishing a separate state called Tamil Eelam in the Northern and Eastern provinces of the Island. The LTTE known generally as the Tigers had the reputation of monolithic unity. This image was seriously dented in 1993 when the LTTE’s former Deputy Leader Gopalswamy Mahendrarajah alias “Mahathaya” was
Sri Lanka verifiably failed to meet 33% of the commitments due by end-February 2024 in its International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme, according to the February update of Verité Research’s ‘IMF Tracker’. Many of these commitments that are classified as ‘not met’ on IMF Tracker were designed to improve governance. These include commitments related to publishing information (transparency), and those that require the passage of governance-improving
This political grandstanding is nothing more than benefitting from the country’s misery. When even a remotely cohesive nation is faced with an existential crisis, its disparate stakeholders momentarily set aside their differences. The survival of the state takes precedence over everything else. For a recent example, consider Israel, where political opposition has joined a war cabinet and people of the Left and Centre who loath Benjamin Netanyahu
Part I of this article, which was published on February 29, laid out the grim fiscal and debt sustainability outlook for Sri Lanka. The key driver of debt dynamics is the gap between real GDP growth and real interest rates on government debt. Sustained annual growth of 5-6% and low real interest rates through disciplined fiscal policy would significantly improve debt sustainability. With slowing labour force growth due to an ageing population,
Are the people of Sri Lanka happy? Most independent and non-party analysts would say a clear no. Millions of people are suffering from a lack of food, shelter, clothing, healthcare needs, education and other facilities. So it is clear that except for the politicians– most of whom make money illegally– and big business magnets, most of Sri Lanka’s people are unhappy. Next week, the United Nations will mark the International Day of Happiness. In a
As a turbulent world races into year 2024, the only remaining superpower is a troubled giant (China is a great power, but its military (especially naval) and nuclear forces are still no match for America’s, and it would be economically disastrous for China to start an arms race with the US now with its economy in trouble). The American economy is in trouble, too, with the US dollar losing its value and dire predictions of another Great Depress
Sri Lankan women seem to have gained an unprecedented and considerable importance in Sri Lankan politics lately, thanks to the record gatherings of women by JVP/NPP as a part of their show off of power, as the major elections are around the corner. These gatherings have some sort of copycat effect on some other political parties as well, which is also a good sign, as far as women’s politics is concerned. It is within that context that the Inter
It was a little past noon when we reached the Uda Walawe National Park. We were excited to see elephants in their natural habitats, but serious concern was bothering everyone of us at the same time. In the backdrop of battling with an aggravating human-elephant conflict, environmentalists have speculated whether elephants at the Uda Walawe National Park are starving due to a massive shortage of food. As we entered the Park, we noticed speculation
International Women’s Day is an opportunity to celebrate women and girls around the world and applaud all they have achieved in the fight for equality. However, despite progress, girls and women continue to face systemic barriers that undermine their rights, limit their opportunities, and diminish their well-being. When global crises such as climate disasters, poverty, and hunger occur, women and girls are affected the most. This is also the case
This article has been prepared based on a discussion with K. B. Gunaratne, Former Director of Agriculture, who worked directly with three presidents of this country. The Executive Presidency was introduced to Sri Lanka by Junius Richard Jayewardene (JRJ) under the 1978 Constitution. JRJ became the Prime Minister for the first time in 1977 after obtaining a 5/6 th majority at the General Election held on July 21, 1977 and created a sustainable gov
Despite the executive colliding head on sometimes with the Parliament and some other times with judiciary, the Constitutional Council and “independent Commissions in the recent past, the former has emerged victorious always, sometimes at the expense of the rules of the duel. For instance, in spite of the battle between the executive on behalf of the two ruling parties and the Election Commission backed by the Opposition parties over the local g
Eighteen months back, when the people languished long hours in lengthy queues to buy that elusive gas cylinder and regular blackouts punctured the day and night amidst economic hardship, there was an unusual unity. Hundreds of thousands people who gathered at the Galle Face Green protest site and took part in many demonstrations across the country came from all walks of life. Petty ethnic politics that pitted people against each other was relegat