Clik here to view.
Prof Ashley Halpe: a teacher in and out of class
There would have been more than 400 students gathered in the Ratnayake Hall, Dumbara Campus, University of Peradeniya on October 15, 1985. They were all first year students of the Arts Faculty and...
View ArticleHistory as the THIRD UMPIRE of reconciliation
October 19, 2003. That was CFA time, i.e. the time of the Ceasefire Agreement between the then Government, headed by Ranil Wickremesinghe, and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. It was a time of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
In search of a state like Kapuru Banda
I do not know his ‘ge’ name. I do not know his address. I do not know if he owns 3 acres of land, 5 acres or 100. All I know is that he is a mason. All I know is that he donated a 3 acre plot of...
View ArticleLet’s be a Weird Nation
THE MORNING INSPECTION We all have favourite columns and columnists. There was a time when access to columnists such as Art Buchwald was limited and so, when I saw what was as close to a ‘complete...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Two hundred thousand words later…
There are times when a man takes stock. He looks back at the road taken, reflects on the million what-ifs along those other roads that were not taken; either by choice or circumstances, due to...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Revolution is a game, really!
When I was working at 'The Nation' I wrote a column for the FREE section of the paper which was dedicated to youth. The title of the column was 'Notes for a Rebel'. I wrote a total of 52 articles in...
View ArticleOne country, one law!
Here’s a challenge: name a country that is mono-ethnic, mono-religious and monolithic in terms of political beliefs. There are none. In Sri Lanka we have Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, Burghers and...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Besties are butterflies
One of the greatest delights in my brief career as a journalist was writing for the kids' section of 'The Nation'. I wrote over fifty articles in my last year at that newspaper. I am thrilled to...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Sleep my children and may peace attend you all...
This was first published in the Daily News on June 3, 2010, exactly 6 years ago. It was written just after Israsel attacked a flotilla of aid ships bound for the Gaza strip, killing 10 people in the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Arantalawa is a temple called ‘Never Again’*
There are villages whose names are not known only by residents and a few others living in the neighbourhood. Twenty four years ago, few or none in Colombo would have known of a village called...
View ArticleClik here to view.
And what if the corporate sector held a demonstration?
This article was first published in the Daily News on June 2, 2011 under the title 'An incredible short-story about a tear-gassed demonstration'. Men in full suit and some with ties loosened and top...
View ArticleA time to go down on my knees and show veneration
Saji Cumaraswamy was an amazing lady. She was the first girl to attend Trinity College but that's the least of her distinctions. I got to know her about 6-7 years ago. She used to comment on...
View ArticleA vote of no-confidence on constituency begs return of favour
There are times when regimes stop trusting their constituencies. This is the beginning of a process which ends with the constituencies stop trusting the very people they placed in power. This article...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How about including "Heritage Impact Assessment" in the development discourse?
For decades those fascinated with progress were blind to what ‘development’ did to the environment. A tree was, for example, valued for timber, not for the shade it provides, not for its role in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
On the life and afterlife of Elmer ‘Geronimo’ Pratt
Geronimo Pratt, aka Geronimo Ji-Jaga, died in Tanzania 5 years ago. I met Geronimo twice, once in Ithaca, NY and once at a conference on political prisoners in Vermont. Soft voice, clear eyes and a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Make sure you don’t miss the bus!
When I was working at 'The Nation' I wrote a column for the FREE section of the paper which was dedicated to youth. The title of the column was 'Notes for a Rebel'. I wrote a total of 52 articles in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Principle of Culpability
"Well, it is known that when the boss is crooked, it is a license for his/her subordinates to indulge as well. The reverse is more revealing. If the minions are in to picking, the chances are the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Three-wheelers are tortoises and hedges are sentinels
One of the greatest delights in my brief career as a journalist was writing for the kids' section of 'The Nation'. I wrote over fifty articles in my last year at that newspaper. I have resumed the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Some vote with their legs, some just cannot
A couple of weeks ago Kapila M Gamage launched his book of poems 'Theiyum Kokila' (I understand, Kokila). In the title poem there is a reference to a pair of crutches. There's a lot of empathy with...
View ArticlePower-sharing, yes! Devolution, no!
It's an old topic but one which neither goes away nor is marked by reason. This was published under the same title in the 'Daily News' 5 years ago. There are two terms that are used frequently as...
View Article