by Rohan Edirisinha & Asanga Welikala, Centre for Policy Alternatives, Colombo, 2008 Essays on Federalism in Sri Lanka is a new collection of essays and articles on the Federal idea in Sri Lanka, edited by Rohan Edrisinha and Asanga Welikala. CPA has since its inception been at the forefront of the advocacy of federalism as a… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Politics
Does Sri Lanka Need a Truth and Reconciliation Mechanism?
by Mirak Raheem, Groundviews, Colombo, November 26, 2022 Groundviews on Instagram: “In 2018, the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government laid the groundwork for the establishment of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Its…” In the lead up to the September session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) the Government of Sri Lanka floated the proposal of establishing… Read more »
‘Satygraha: Freedom Movement of Tamils in Ceylon’
by S. Ponniah, 1963 68740.pdf (noolaham.net) Satyagraha by S Ponniah 1963 Transcribed by Satchi Sri Kantha with commentary Satyagraha of February 1961 in Eelam Satyagraha of March 1961 in Eelam
Right-sizing the Sri Lanka Army
by Major General Boniface Perera, Ph.D., Daily Mirror Opinion, Colombo, November 29, 2022 [Also Time to make the Sri Lanka Army leaner and meaner – Hard talk | Daily Mirror] The prime responsibility of the Army is to provide protection to the citizens and safeguard territorial Integrity and Sovereignty The veteran Indian diplomat turned security… Read more »
Murugeysen Tiruchelvam and Koneswaram Issue
by DBS Jeyaraj, Daily Mirror, Colombo, November 19, 2022 Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader and Trincomalee district MP Rajavarothayam Sampanthan wrote a politically important letter to President Ranil Wickremesinghe on September 14, 2022. In that detailed missive, the veteran Tamil MP pinpointed several measures being enacted under the current regime affecting the Tamil people…. Read more »
Sri Lanka at Brink of Humanitarian Crisis
Financial Partners Should Support Basic Needs, Promote Respect for Rights by Meenakshi Ganguly, Human Rights Watch, New York, November 24, 2022 The dramatic fuel shortages that accompanied mass protests in Sri Lanka earlier this year may have eased, but for millions of Sri Lankans the economic crisis is worse than ever. This month, the United… Read more »
The Struggle of Memories against Oblivion
by Nillanthan Maha, November 27, 2022 [translation by Google Translate, with some corrections by the editor] This is the 14th Heroes’ Day since 2009. For the last 13 years, Heroes’ Day has been celebrated in one way or another, secretly and openly. Remembrance for the Tamil people has deeper dimensions than just crying and grieving…. Read more »
Indian Ocean Strategic Ocean Newsletter 2022
by Indian Ocean Strategic Studies, New York, January – August 2022 Indian Ocean Strategic Studies newsletter January 2022 Indian Ocean Strategic Studies newsletter March April 2022 Indian Ocean Strategic Studies newsletter May June 2022 Indian Ocean Strategic Studies newsletter July August 2022 Mission of the IOSS The Indian Ocean is at the heart of international… Read more »
UNHRC: Unlucky Seven For Sri Lanka
by S.V. Kirubaharan, Eurasian Review and The Morning, Colombo, October 11, 2022 Abraham Lincoln once said: “You can please some of the people some of the time, all of the people some of the time, some of the people all of the time, but you can never please all of the people all of the… Read more »
Urban Poverty Triples in Sri Lanka amid Enduring Crisis
by Meera Srinivasan, The Hindu, Chennai, October 11, 2022 World Bank flags need for higher social security in the island As Sri Lankans continue braving their worst economic crisis since Independence, urban poverty on the island has tripled in the last year, from 5% to 15 %, according to a recent World Bank report. Sri… Read more »
Economic Crisis and Resistance in Batticaloa
Eastern Sri Lanka by Thavarasa Anukuvi, Polity, Social Scientists’ Association, Colombo, October 10, 2022 Introduction The question whether ‘the people’ of the North and East should or could protest in solidarity with the #GotaGoHome protest movement has been the subject of much debate (Pundir & Kanapathippillai 2022; Sandranathan 2022; Ellis-Petersen & Sandran 2022; De Soysa… Read more »
MP Sampanthan Letter re Thirukkoneshwaram Temple
by TNA leader MP Sampanthan to Pres. Ranil Wickremesinghe, September 14, 2022 THIRUKONESHWARAM – “DAKSHANA KAILASH” RENOWNED HINDU TEMPLE IN TRINCOMALEE AND TRINCOMALEE HARBOUR I am informed that in recent times certain meetings have been held in Trincomalee wherein activities relating to the above two institutions Thirukoneshwaram – Dakshana Kailash and Trincomalee Harbour have been… Read more »
Sri Lanka’s Past and Future with Geneva Resolutions
by Ruki Fernando, The Morning, Colombo, September 20, 2022 “How many more years should we come to Geneva?” – Sandya Ekneligoda, wife of disappeared journalist Prageeth Ekneligoda, speaking at an informal consultation on the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Resolution on Sri Lanka, in Geneva, Switzerland, 16 September 2022. Amongst the many international institutions… Read more »
Ensuring Sri Lanka’s Compliance with UNHRC’ Resolutions
by Thambu Kanagasabai, LLM London, Former Lecturer in Law, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka, September 22, 2022 Eelam Tamils in Sri Lanka and Tamils all over the world are very deeply concerned in relation to Sri Lanka’s past human rights violations including war crimes and the very minimal steps taken by Sri Lanka so far… Read more »
Child’s Guide To Ranilnomics
Proposed Debt Restructuring Will Pose More Issues Than Answers By W A Wokewardema, Colombo Telegraph, September 26, 2022 Dr. W.A Wijewardena Aseni, whiz kid of economics, and her grandfather Sarath Mahatthaya, ex-official of the Finance Ministry, are continuing their conversation of the economics of President Ranil Wickremesinghe, tagged Ranilnomics. Previously, they discussed the ideological battle… Read more »
Photos of Menik Farm Detainees 2009
From the files of Nagalingam Ethirveerasingam. Ph.D. (Cornell) Do we know where all these detainees are? Can UNHCR confirm they were all released? Photo_FemaleYouthDetainees_MenikfarmMovie6 Photo_MaleYouth Detainees_Menikfarm_Movie7 Where are the pictures of all the other detainees? From Dr. Ethirveerasingam: These photos were sent to me by a UN Refugee official monitoring the Vavuniya camp. I think… Read more »
Without a Tamil Buy-in, Sri Lanka’s Quest for Change will Fail
by JS Tissainayagam, International Policy Digest, June 9, 2022 Tamils in Sri Lanka protesting economic mismanagement, abuse of power, and corruption are demanding structural change. One idea being floated around is changing the country’s constitution. However, the proposals being offered do little for structural change or stability because they disregard Tamil concerns. Tamils must put… Read more »
OCHA Multi-Dimensional Crisis Situation Report
by Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, New York, September 16, 2022 PDF report with map at Sri Lanka Multi-Dimensional Crisis Situation Report No. 5 This report is produced by the OCHA Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ROAP) on behalf of the ISCG. The updates below cover activities carried out between 09… Read more »
The Military Still Runs the Show
In Sri Lanka The international community has a part to play in ending its culture of impunity. by Viruben Nandakuman, Foreign Policy, Washington, DC, August 4, 2022 Viruben Nandakumar is an editor at the Tamil Guardian. In the early hours of Friday, July 22, hundreds of Sri Lankan soldiers marched through the country’s capital. They… Read more »
What do Imaginations of Haunted Landscapes Tell us about Everyday Politics?
by Erol Saglam, Takhayyul, University College London, Sept. 7, 2022 How should we then make sense of this two-dimensional engagement with the past, that is one denying the historicity of the societal violence and its destructive aftermath and the other reminiscing it discreetly and in transfigured ways? I could not help but ask whether, alongside… Read more »