Ahead of the vote on yet another resolution on Sri Lanka at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) tomorrow, an intense debate has taken place on the move for the inclusion of foreign judges in a judicial mechanism to hear accountability a

There are so many claimants for the Yahapalanaya government now, but one should not forget that the first Salvo was fired by one, who left Parliament membership and took his fight to the Provincial Councils. He now laments that he is unable to serv

These are UNHRC days. These are Yahapalana-UNHRC days which are therefore very different from the Rajapaksa-UNHRC days. Both regimes use the same lexicon when it comes to ‘reconciliation’. Back then too we heard talk of truth, reconcili

There’s talk in political circles that a cabinet reshuffle is imminent. This can mean many things. If it means that those proven to be incompetent are replaced by those likely to do a better job, it would be a good move. If it means that peop

Yesterday, March 21 was the International Forest Day with the theme being ‘Forests and Energy’. At a time of potentially catastrophic....

On March 24th, human rights activists and victims’ groups worldwide will commemorate International Day for the Dignity of Victims, in honour...

As we commemorate the 65th death anniversary of Don Stephen Senanayake, the nation is facing a Constitutional crisis. The 1948 Constitution....

D.S. Senanayake, the first Prime Minister of independent Sri  Lanka, in his inaugural address to the nation said, “The independence we....

Tomorrow March 22 is World Water Day and the main aim is to focus attention on the importance of freshwater and advocate the....

This week under a fresh UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) resolution, Sri Lanka is likely to receive a two-year-extension to fully...

Hafeel Farisz confuses what I have said about Gotabaya and Gunaratnam, both of whom are the most interesting figures I find in....

The choice should not be difficult, looked at superficially. But our experience shows that the Choice is not that easy. It is quite....

“This is a debate about the future of Sri Lanka; our future; our fate. Which side are you on? Pick one”, Dr. Jayatilleka’s Facebook page....

Sri Lanka’s local political narrative last week revolved around the plight of the Sri Lanka crew on board the oil tanker Aries 13 and....

Land struggles that were little fires during the repressive years after the war, have now lit up the political landscape of the....

On Wednesday a UN agency – the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) published a report accusing....

At the current 34th sessions of the UNHRC the draft resolution on ‘Reconciliation, accountability and human rights’, to be placed before the Council shortly, requests Sri Lanka to fully implement the measures identified in HRC Resolution

On Tuesday, March 21 the world marks the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination,

The Donald Trump administration has read the Riot Act on the United Nations Human Rights Council. It has threatened to withdraw itself from the UNHRC, unless the council agrees to toe its line.

Although basically selfish, the world economic system teaches us that happiness means personal gain accumulating more and more with power, prestige and popularity. All major religions teach something totally different.

Professor G. H. Peiris has grappled with several difficult themes and in working the essence of these, he has produced an outstanding monograph, making an important contribution to an understanding of the political upheavals witnessed in South A

Ali Shariati was the ideologue of the Iranian Revolution. It was Shariati’s liberation theology- a rationalization of Marxism through the lenses of Islam that propelled Ayathollah Ruholla Khomeni’s take-over of power in 1979 overthrowing

Are the loyalists of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who call themselves the Joint Opposition (JO) playing into the hands of the Government by fighting for the demand made by Wimal Weerawansa’s National Freedom Front (NFF) to recognise

“The war will come back if you don’t heal the wounds of memories” was a warning given by the South African Anglican priest Michael Lapsley, in his interview with Susitha R. Fernando on 10 March.  He was visiting Sri Lanka recen

The election of Attorney-at-Law U. R. De Silva as the new president of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka was accepted by Solicitor General Suhada Gamlath yesterday, after what appears to have been a stormy campaign. De Silva won by a narrow

This boy (let’s call him Heshan) is a brilliant student. He’s almost 18 now and will sit for Advanced Level exams next year. His parents want him to be a doctor. He plays the cello, goes for tennis classes, and spends his waking hours s

Countless examples can be drawn from world history to support the thesis that one of the necessary pre-conditions for the rise of extremism is the silence or indeed the silencing of moderates. There are also instances where moderates flirt with ext

The government gave mind initially to conduct the elections to all the Provincial Councils (PC) on the same day. The elections were due first for the North Central, Sabaragamuwa and Eastern PCs this year as their terms are scheduled to conclude in

Canned fish is the ready-to-eat, convenient choice of food for anyone who loves to indulge in the tempting fish cutlet, for those planning to whip up a quick meal or simply for anyone who loves fish. Canned fish such as Tuna, Mackerel and Sardines ar

Today is world Consumer Rights Day and the Consumers International Movement says the theme for this year will be “consumer rights in the digital age”, considering its contemporary significance for developing and developed countries