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The resilient glory that is Jaffna
‘Where are you from?’ is a common question that follows greeting when stranger encounters stranger. Place is important because place marks person. At least, that has been the case for centuries and...
View ArticleNutrition Society in cahoots with food industry
Food and nutrition go together, that’s common sense. We’ve however come far from the time of organic agriculture, and moved quite a ways from ‘needs’ to ‘wants’, the latter being manufactured by those...
View ArticleTime to act on the ‘disappeared’
Thirty years ago, if a Grade 10 child in Sri Lanka wrote ‘He was disappeared’ he or she would have been ‘corrected’ by the English teacher. ‘Disappeared’ back then was the past tense of the verb...
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Let’s Bhutanize Sri Lanka
Courtesy www.ampersandtravel.wordpress.comThe term ‘Bhutanization’ was first used in relation to Sri Lanka by the late Rajiv Gandhi. This was when he was India’s Prime Minister and in that...
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A patriotic citizen obtains perspective
[In a parallel universe called Humility] "I supported our troops in their efforts to rid the country of the terrorist menace. I am grateful to them for many reasons. I cheered their victories for...
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A soldier takes stock
[In a parallel universe called 'Humility'] Some may say that I put my life on line. I did. That was a choice; let’s say an occupational hazard. It was for country, sure, but it was a salary-based...
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“Discipline will see us through the hard times”
Lt. General Daya Ratnayake speaks about the challenges of a post-conflict Army Commander Some years ago, a young Army officer was scheduled to address some professionals among whom were senior...
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Let us recognize our family
Eduardo Galeano’s latest book, ‘Children of the Days: A Calendar of Human History’ is not about children. Neither is it a comprehensive collation of important things that happened on each day of the...
View ArticleThat 'Nutritional Society Clarification'
The NutritionSociety of Sri Lanka (NSSL) has written to The Nation clarifying its position on issues raised in this newspaper on matters related to nutrition [See NSSL statement here]. We responded...
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A few things that require explanation
Pablo Neruda, writing about the tragedies of the Spanish Civil War, wrote of poets, especially his young friend Federico Garcia Lorca, whom he greatly admired. He asks, in verse --And you'll ask: why...
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Self-sufficiency the best response
A judge cannot, or rather is not supposed to, sit in judgment on himself or herself. That’s called ‘conflict of interest’. Take any Annual Report of any large company or business entity that aspires...
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A development expert meditates on cattle
[In a parallel universe called 'Humility'...] Last week I heard a very sad story. It was originally related by Mahinda Kumara Dalupotha, who hails from Ehetuwewa, around 9 km from Galgamuwa off the...
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The Elephant Brand: A lifetime choice
We all have ‘earliest memories’. Among what I remember of ‘early days’ is my Montessori teacher, first days in school, my older brother Arjuna preparing to go as a Berec Battery at the fancy dress...
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White does not always imply purity
Fonterra Brands Watergate is the name given to a political scandal that rocked the United States of America in the early 1970s. It was about a break-in and a cover-up. It led to the resignation of...
View ArticleThe staunchest friends of the regime
The word in the street is that Ranil Wickremesinghe’s is the regime’s best friend. Inept leadership, fuelling division in opposition ranks to prompt defection, refusal to take on the Government in any...
View ArticleA nation of minorities
There is a set of people, good-hearted (at least in their image of ‘self’) who blame all the ills of this country on what they call ‘majoritarianism’. Majority is a word that is used to refer to...
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The J.P. Duminy Principle of Engagement
It was, relatively speaking, an easy target. A total of 115 in a T-20 international on a wicket that contained no monsters for batsmen was expected to be easy-peasy for Sri Lanka, given a batting a...
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Suresh Premachandran recovers from selective memory loss
[In a parallel universe called 'Humility'] I, Suresh Premachandran, recently stated that Minister Basil Rajapaksa should not stop at saying ‘sorry’ to the near and dear of those killed and injured in...
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Wickramabahu re-thinks Marxism
I, Wickramabahu Karunaratne, sorry Dr. Wickramabahu Karunaratne, better known in certain quarters as Bahu Sahodaraya or Comrade Bahu, hereby offer an addendum to the entire Marxist canon. Capitalism...
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On Navi Pillay’s ‘open-mind’, mildly
Navanethem "Navi" Pillay, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, is due in Sri Lanka today. Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe expects Pillay to come with an open mind. Pillay, for her...
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