Monthly Archives: November 2011

MR not boon to entire world as state media suggests

POSITIVE CHANGES NEED TO BE SUPPORTED BY PROPER PROCESSES
Although commentators not affiliated to the government are inclined to be severely critical of it for its many lapses, there is another side to the story. This can be seen in the government media which presents a story that is fulsome in praise of the
present developments in […]

By Dr. Jehan Perera | Published on November 28, 2011 at 1:14 pm

LLRC report:The Need for Transparency

“Our challenge is strongly to encourage the Sri Lankan government to embrace reconciliation,
accountability, and respect for human rights, while trying not to push the country towards Burma-like isolation from the west” Patricia A. Butenis Former US Ambassador in Sri Lanka as revealed in Wikileaks cables.
The Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) presented its final report […]

By Lakshman Indranath Keerthisinghe | Published on November 27, 2011 at 11:01 am

Mr. President, you’re not worthy of the office you hold…

The occasion was the annual Budget Speech in Parliament. Unlike in the Westminster- system days, and
in terms of age-old traditions of parliamentary practices, the Finance Minister, in this instance His Excellency the President of Sri Lanka (as he could not trust to give this vital portfolio away to any other member of his sixty one-strong […]

By Vishnuguptha | Published on November 27, 2011 at 10:55 am

A family of shawl bearers and a side order of cabraal

My Darling Ma-hinder
Heavens to Betsy my dear fellow, if it hasn’t been an exhilarating ride on a dizzying gradient for you chaps from Humbug-tots despite losing out to Gold Coast in the Games bid.
Take last Friday. Not only did the courts present you with a carefully gift wrapped Birthday bouquet and bung the Fonnie into […]

By Staff Correspondent | Published on November 27, 2011 at 10:25 am

Growing Challenges to Internet Freedom

Next week, government, business, and civil society representatives will gather at the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Nairobi, Kenya to discuss
the future of the global digital space. This gathering takes place against the backdrop of growing restrictions by repressive regimes on online freedoms. The U.S. and European governments have undertaken significant initiatives to respond to […]

By Staff Correspondent | Published on November 24, 2011 at 3:41 am

Sri Lanka:Animosity in the last stages of war could be permanent scar in ethnic relations

Last attempt
The Norwegian government’s effort to facilitate a peace process in the period 2002-06 was the last attempt to achieve peace in Sri Lanka’s war through peaceful means. The publication of an evaluation report by the Norwegian government to assess what happened during that period and to
draw relevant lessons for the future has rekindled debate […]

By Dr. Jehan Perera | Published on November 24, 2011 at 1:34 am

Rolling the dice in Sri Lanka: Are casinos eroding our society?

‘Tis all a Chequer-board of Nights and Days,
Where Destiny with men for Pieces plays
Hither and thither moves, and checks, and slays,
And one by one in the Closet lay”
-Omar Khayyam .The Rubaiyat
This column dedicated to the notion of making Sri Lanka the Wonder of Asia turns its spotlight today on the cancer of casinos and gambling […]

By Lakshman Indranath Keerthisinghe | Published on November 24, 2011 at 12:48 am

Is Hirunika Premachandra, Sri Lanka’s Cindy Sheehan?

“There is a tide in the affairs of men.
Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;
Omitted, all the voyage of their life
Is bound in shallows and in miseries.
On such a full sea are we now afloat,
And we must take the current when it serves,
Or lose our ventures.” – Brutus, in Julius Caesar, Act 4
Winning […]

By Vishnuguptha | Published on November 24, 2011 at 12:20 am

What a shootout between two politicians says about a nation

Since the end of its civil war against the ruthless Tamil Tigers (LTTE) in 2009, the Sri Lankan regime’s own reputation for ruthlessness has grown. At its heart are the three Rajapaksa brothers – President Mahinda, defence secretary Gotabhaya (“Gota”) and Economic Development Minister Basil
– controlling a formidable military force that has quashed all resistance […]

By Edward Mortimer | Published on November 23, 2011 at 9:23 pm

Freedom of Expression on the Internet in Sri Lanka

22nd November 2011, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives is pleased to release a new report examining the freedom of expression on the Internet in Sri Lanka. Read it online here or download it as a PDF here (1Mb).
Since 2007, the freedom of expression on the Internet has faced considerable restrictions on account […]

By Centre for Policy Alternatives | Published on November 22, 2011 at 5:32 am