A lost generation of Tamil youth
Dr. Daya Somasundaram, senior professor of psychiatry at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Jaffna, in this two-part article based on the Anandarajan Memorial Lecture he delivered earlier this month at St. John’s College Jaffna, analyses the impact of post-war trauma on the Tamil youth in the North, present psychosocial context and issues relating to [...]
At home in Sri Lanka
Hoping to captivate the audience with a night of amazing sensitive and heartfelt music, Irish singer Mary Duff together with guest artist Jordan Mogey will be performing at the BMICH this evening at 7 p.m. Setting apart some time off her busy schedule, Mary Duff spoke to the Sunday Times on the eve of her [...]
“Celebration with Song”: Professional and amateur singers gather for a wonderful evening
“Celebration with Song” featuring the Congregation Choir with Neranjan de Silva, the De Lanerolle Brothers, Adele Beling, Eshantha de Andrado and Melanie Bibile will take place at the Cathedral of Christ the Living Saviour on Tuesday, October 27 from 7.30 p.m. onwards. The first of two rehearsals for the event held last Sunday saw encouraging [...]
China-Sri Lanka Cooperation Studies Centre inaugurated
A long felt need to promote and nurture Sino-Lanka relations was realised on October 22, with the inauguration of ‘China-Sri Lanka Cooperation Studies Centre’ (CSLCSC) at the headquarters of the Pathfinder Foundation (PF), by His Excellency Yi Xianliang, Ambassador of China in Sri Lanka. China has been a steadfast friend of Sri Lanka during the [...]
‘Towards New Urbanity-Places for Urban Coherence’
Cities, in essence, are complex agglomerations of places. From places for work and places for living, and places for relaxation and enjoyment, today’s cities have grown immensely to provide settings for the complex range of numerous day-to-day activities of people. With multi-faceted neighbourhoods propped up by networks of public services, cities are indeed invaluable cultural [...]
A marvel and a miracle
A creative and imaginative chariot designed by three artists from the Weliwita parish was widely admired when it carried the statue of Our Lady of Fatima in the procession to celebrate the feast of the Blessed Mother at Fatima Church, Battaramulla last Saturday night. The statue was placed behind the holy Bible with a cross [...]
RASSL lecture: Protecting the Monuments of the Ancient Fortress of Kotte
The Royal Asiatic Society Sri Lanka (RASSL) monthly public lecture “The Challenges in Protecting the Monuments of the Ancient Fortress of Kotte” will be delivered by Ishan Wiratunga, Secretary, Kotte Heritage Foundation on Monday, October 26 at 5 p.m. at the Gamini Dissanayake Auditorium No. 96, Ananda Coomaraswamy Mawatha, Colombo 07. Kotte is the 4th [...]
Lake House former employees’ get-together
The get-together of the former employees of Lake House will be held at “Lankasiri” No.9, Melder Place, Nugegoda, on Saturday November 14 from 9 a.m. onwards. Old timers at Lake House wishing to participate- please contact one of the following: Binoy Surendra-0717422420; P.B. Illangasinghe- 0777689762; M.D. Dharmasiri- 0718789865 ; Ariyasena Handuwela- 0714746423
The great leader revival
LONDON – Two hundred years have passed since the battle of Waterloo, where Napoleon’s calamitous defeat made such a huge dent in his country’s self-image that General Charles de Gaulle, in his history of the French army, simply omitted it. Nonetheless, Napoleon, like de Gaulle, would both easily make it onto any list of history’s [...]
The Trans-Pacific Partnership: What’s at Stake for Sri Lanka?
On October 5, 12 Pacific-Rim nations, including Vietnam and Malaysia, along with the US and Japan, announced the successful conclusion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement. The TPP is the largest ever trade agreement outside of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) – it is said to “cover” 40% of the global economy. The deal’s [...]
At last, Sri Lanka moves to a single standard plug socket
Electricity is now an essential commodity. The electrification level in Sri Lanka is about 95% and will increase with ongoing development in the North and East. Electricity has made our lives more comfortable. On the other hand, there are a considerable number of accidents every year. Negligence, unsafe electrical wiring and equipment are the main [...]
From colonialism to neocolonialism
Studying historical facts of events that occurred in this country two centuries ago there are many similarities which if given serious consideration could prevent this nation from repeating past mistakes which resulted in the loss of independence. Vested interests and external powers try to destabilize this country that is strategically located in the Indian Ocean [...]
A restructuring of policy next week?
Sri Lanka has recently become eligible for membership to the Open Government Partnership (OGP), an international initiative committed to making government more “open, effective and accountable”. Such buzzwords have left many jaded in the past, so for Sri Lanka three key questions arise: Q1. What does OGP membership entail? Q2. Will it actually have an [...]
Degree of change
The stage is set for the oldest university in Sri Lanka to showcase its prowess in the arena of research, starting tomorrow (October 26). The five-day Annual Research Symposium of the University of Colombo will be held from October 26-30, with the inaugural ceremony scheduled for tomorrow amidst much pageantry at the College House. While [...]
Questions on global governance
What are the rules that govern “global” space — the rules of ‘global governance’? Who makes these rules? What are the politics of rule-making? If politics in the national sphere provides us with a model of how rule-makers can be held to be representative or accountable, what are the politics which apply in the realm [...]
The hybrid court shame!
One of the advantages of this country having a foreign minister who was educated at Oxford University (unlike a foreign minister whose sole tertiary qualification is in Clothing Design and Technology from St Martin’s School of Art) is that Professor G.L. Peiris would have understood perfectly well the meaning of the word ‘HYBRID’. The Oxford [...]