With confusing, contradictory and sometimes mysterious announcements about the upcoming elections—we still do not know whether it will be a presidential or parliamentary election—the death of the Tamil National Alliance leader R. Sampanthan needs to encourage and inspire other political leaders to act peacefully and calmly to find a just and fair solution to Sri Lanka’s ethnic crisis. Since independence in 1948 there has been unity in diversity
Rajavarothayam Sampanthan, the nonagenarian Parliamentarian who breathed his last on Sunday was a Tamil politician who for decades unsuccessfully fought to reconcile the extremists and moderates among Tamil people. In a way, one might even describe him as a politician who was trapped between those two groups – extremists and moderates – in his efforts to find a solution to the ethnic problem. Also, he was a man who was sometimes attacked by the
Veteran Tamil political leader and senior Trincomalee district MP, Rajavarothayam Sampanthan passed away peacefully in Colombo on 30 June 2024. The nonagenarian Sampanthan who had been ailing for some time was listening after dinner to an audio tape of “Kanthasashti Kavasam” verses sung by the Soolaman Sisters Rajalakshmi and Jeyalakshmi when he collapsed with a groan. Sampanthan was immediately taken to Lanka Hospital where he breathed his l
None is willing to part with what one possesses unless the receivable in return is better or equivalent. The receivables could be tangible or intangible. There is no exception to this norm. The payment of tax to the government is not an exception to this norm.What a taxpayer receives in return for the tax he/she pays is a million-dollar question in the Sri Lankan context.
In the Gaza Strip, Palestinian blood continues to flow like a river. The total death toll has topped 38,000. Among them are 16,000 children. Some 21,000 children are unaccounted for. They are believed to be buried alive under the rubble. The Nazis’ horror pales into insignificance when compared to the horror Israel is inflicting on the people of Gaza.
Without franchise, it is not possible to activate electing Representatives of the people to the parliament or electing an Executive President according to the provisions set out in the Constitution of Sri Lanka. Article 04 and 04(C) in Chapter 01 of the Constitution of Sri Lanka states “sovereignty is in people… sovereignty includes the power of Government, fundamental rights and the franchise”. Based on the results of past elections most of the
World Population Day falls on July 11, and population is a vital issue in socio-economic and political affairs. Data given by the United Nations (UN) will help us analyse the situation. According to the UN, it took hundreds of thousands of years for the world population to grow to 1 billion–then in just another 200 years or so, it grew sevenfold. By 2011, the global population reached the 7 billion mark; it stood at almost 7.9 billion in 2021, an
Sri Lankans as a whole refuse to accept the official version of analysis and what is explained as the truth. At present the biggest truth that everyone in this sun kissed island must be aware of is that the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) has negotiated with representatives of the Bilateral Lenders Official Creditors Committee (BLOCC) and China to restructure debts amounting to US$ 10 billion. However, the government is concerned regarding false i
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s State visit to Russia from July 8 to 9, is significant because it will be taking place when India’s relations with the US are showing unmistakable strains and ties with China continue to be in a logjam.
Sri Lankans in many parts of the island celebrated on Wednesday (June 26) the government’s so-called victory of successfully restructuring its debt repayment commitments with foreign lenders with a round of milk rice and chilli sambol. However, the government is silent about how it would settle multilateral debts. A large share of these debts was used for purposes that can be contested. Debts were also used for infrastructure projects which brou
From freedom to WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange is a free man. His freedom is a triumph for all those who cherish and advocate freedom of expression and transparency in governance. A product of the Internet-led digital era, WikiLeaks dared to publish what the mainstream media dared not do, though they were supposed to. He exposed the imperialists’ agenda, their illegal acts, and how they schemed behind the scenes to protect and promote their
In President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s address yesterday (26), many independent analysts expected that he would announce his candidature for the Presidential Elections in September or October amidst wide speculation about who the other candidates would be and whether the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna will continue its alliance with the President, or even whether Parliamentary Elections will be held first. Since Independence in 1948, Sri Lanka h
In November 2022, Verité Research wrote on the importance of better data to formulate a necessary air quality policy in Sri Lanka (https://www.veriteresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/20230425_AQD02_AirQualityandPublicHealth_F.pdf). The author recently worked with Verité Research staff to audit the air quality data that had since become available from around Sri Lanka, and concluded that there still wasn’t enough data to base any firm policy
Tourist arrivals surpass 63,000 in first half of October
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Catholic Church rebuffs Gammanpila’s allegations
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SL unveils new ’P’ series passport with enhanced security features