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The "drought": Its politics, profit, disempowerment and history
Lunugamvehera, Hambantota looked no different in 2001 to this image, taken this year [Pic courtesy Sunday Times.] A different drought, a different part of the country, a different time. This was...
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Has anyone seen Sarath Fonseka
Has anyone seen Sarath Fonseka?This Uva election has been dubbed as a testing of the waters for bigger elections, such as the Presidential. This is why the ruling party and the main opposition party,...
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The true confessions of Mahinda Rajapaksa and Xi Jinping
President Xi Jinping of China came to town. He was accorded a splendid welcome and one might even say ‘unlike any given to any head of state in recent times’. China, after all, does not interfere in...
View ArticleSri Lanka in the Asian Century
In his classic work of historical sociology, ‘The long twentieth century,’ Giovanni Arrighi uses the term ‘long century’ to connote eras of domination, tracing the unfolding of capitalism through the...
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The Scotland vote and Sri Lanka
On the face of it, the referendum held last week on the future of Scotland and therefore the future of the British union, has some relevance for Sri Lanka. After all it was about separation. This is...
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Obama Unplugged at the UNGA*
Disclaimer: Barack Obama, President of the United States of America addressed the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York on September 23, 2010. President Obama is a Nobel Laureate, an...
View ArticleThe reasonable use of Tamil
I am all for identity assertion. I do not think that submerging culture associated with language, custom, faith etc in an overall mishmash that is even more amorphous is necessarily good or better....
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Winner and losers in Uva and the FB hero
Everyone won in UvaEveryone did! The UPFA won the Council. The UNP increased its vote share compared to the PC election of 2009 and the General Election of 2010. The JVP got some extra votes. SF and...
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Tissa Attanayake explains himself
I resigned from the Leadership Council. I claimed that others in the Leadership Council were treating me badly. I claimed that all I wanted was party unity. I can say a lot of things but you have to...
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The Class of ’72 won it all on a mystic Sunday
Gatherings of old friends is always nice, even if what occasioned the meeting happened to be something as somber and sad as a funeral. My friend JanakaPerera’s father passed away last Saturday and as...
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The H-Factor in Uva
Some months ago when there was talk of Harin Fernando giving up his parliamentary seat to come forward as the UNP’s Chief Ministerial Candidate for Uva, there was one rather talkative man who...
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Barack Obama (Unplugged) at the United Nations (Version 2014)
Barack Obama, President of the United States of America addressed the General Assembly of the United Nations last week. He made a long and impassioned speech, touching on key global issues but as...
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How would you paint the sky?
What color is your hair? What color is a jambu? What are the colors on your T-shirt? These are common questions adults ask from children. That’s how we learn the names of colors. It’s like showing...
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Dear Rebel, have you got the e-factor out of the way?*
This is the first of a series of articles on rebels and rebellion I am writing for the FREE section of 'The Nation'. 'FREE' is dedicated to youth and youthfulness. You want to say ‘no’ to something...
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Friendship and Enmity
Addressing the UN General Assembly last week, President Mahinda Rajapaksa subsequent to what can be called a pointed but relatively mild critique of the movers and shakers of the organization,...
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When Robertalokaya illuminated Anuralokaya
Anuralokaya is the name of an exhibition featuring the varied work of Anura Srinath. Anura does all kinds of things with brush, color and line. He paints portraits and landscapes, has drawn comic...
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The true owners of the UNP
The true owners of the UNPRanil? Wrong. Sajith? Wrong. The Leadership Council? Wrong. Hold your breath. It's the media! Well, certain sections of it. That's what Tissa Attanayake has said. The...
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The Common Candidate conundrum
The 18th Amendment stumped those who thought ‘2 terms and MR is out’. It was a master move on the part of the regime. It made perfect political sense to ensure that the best bet remains eligible....
View ArticleFreedom of information a must in a democratizing process
In May 2009 and for a few months thereafter Colombo appeared (as it had appeared for several years) like a besieged and threatened city. ‘High Security Alert’ seemed to be written all over the face of...
View ArticleThe soft and hard of diplomacy
It was reported that the United States of America had softened its stand on Sri Lanka. This was after President Mahinda Rajapaksa met US Secretary of State John Kerry on the margins of the UN General...
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