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Nihal Fernando: Meticulous gatherer of a nation’s heartbeat
Somewhere in the middle of the year 1995 I received a letter. I was a student in a university in Upstate New York at the time. I knew the name of the author. I knew his face. I didn’t expect a...
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The true meaning of ‘Insider’
Kolombians are a distinct people from Colombo who know much -- so much that they are wont to think that others don't know and can't think. They have things to say. A lot of things to say. The entire...
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Let’s celebrate the nelli and ‘nelliness’
This is the twenty eighth article in a series I am writing for the JEANS section of 'The Nation'. The series is for children. Adults consider yourselves warned...you might re-discover a child within...
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Predictability is asking for trouble
This is the twenty eighth in a series of articles on rebels and rebellion written for the FREE section of 'The Nation'. Scroll to the end for other articles in this series. 'FREE' is dedicated to...
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Speak John (Kerry), like Cochise
First of all, welcome to Sri Lanka. Don’t worry, it’s all heart and not courtesy. This country has embraced one and all. Invader, interferer, brigand, smuggler, embezzler, immigrant, condescending...
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Kolombians know how to eat, alright?
Kolombians are a distinct people from Colombo who know much -- so much that they are wont to think that others don't know and can't think. They have things to say. A lot of things to say. The entire...
View ArticleVen. Uduwela Nanda makes children fly
This was written 5 years ago for the Daily News, for which paper I wrote a daily column titled 'The Morning Inspection'. It is about friendships and values and other things that resist...
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Channa Ekanayaka of Dehi Gaha Ela*
‘I will give you a Kon plant,’ Channa Ekanayaka told me a few weeks ago. This was at a place called Deh iGaha Ela, an elegantly designed vacation hideaway that appears to have grown naturally in that...
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Remember Osama bin Laden (Killed May 2, 2011)?
Guns in, body out but sea does not swallow allObama and his team watched 'The Drama'. They were and are being watched in return. 'Guns in, body out but sea does not swallow all' is the title of an...
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Devolution-justification: how about some truth, accountability and...
Truth, accountability and reconciliation are being talked about a lot these days. Interestingly, many who use these terms think ‘truth’ is equal to systemic and deliberation massacre of Tamil civilians...
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Mahinda's diminishing options
It is indeed ironical that former President Mahinda Rajapaksa's political fortunes have declined to the point that this once all-powerful executive president has to request that he be considered as the...
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Wilpattu: urgent action needed
Are there buffaloes other than this, bold and brash unlike this wary and threatened creature? Pic: www.themudhouse.lkThere's a lot of noise over Wilpattu these days. There are allegations that...
View ArticleHow about some Yahapaalanaya for the private sector?
The private sector is corrupt. No, it’s not the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, Frontline Socialist Party, one of the many parties that grew out of the Communist Party or one of those people who used to...
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Dude, you gotta love our Keriya
He didn't come with guns. He didn't need to. We know he has them and knows how to use them. Kolombians are a distinct people from Colombo who know much -- so much that they are wont to think that...
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Vihanga Perera: more poet than novelist
Vihanga Perera has been shortlisted (yes once again!) for the Gratiaen Prize. This time for his collection of poems, 'Love and Protest'. The others shortlisted are Sandali Ash (for the novella 'Rao's...
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My ‘manaapaya’ for ‘No more Manaapa’
Intra-party poster wars are but one set of many problematic issues of the PR system which the 20th Amendment seeks to rectifyThe passage of the 19th Amendment was not easy. It was not expected to be...
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Maithripala: Blue or Green or what?
Sometime late last year Maithripala Sirisena effectively left the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP). As predicted, he was installed as the leader of the party he ‘left’ the moment he was elected...
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Gota and ‘virality’
'I had nothing to do with this,' Gota says. Went viral, nevertheless. There was a photo of former Secretary, Defence Ministry, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa with a caption that heavily borrows from the late...
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My tribe (with other support) set up a murder
Are we hanging ourselves and are we ok with it if we are? Some die young and some live long. Some die from natural causes, some from unfortunate accidents. Some are murdered. Let us consider a...
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So you want to investigate environmental crimes?
Wilpattu is not the only place where there is illegal felling of trees, encroachment etc. Pic courtesy www.srilankanstyle.com The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) has called for Environmental Crimes...
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