Editorial
Home » EditorialLessons from Colombia
In the faraway continent of Latin America, a peace treaty between the Government and a rebel group has been rejected by the majority of the people. The Government of Colombia and the ‘Revolutionary’ (a euphemism sometimes for a terrorist group) Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) agreed to a ceasefire and signed a peace package that [...]
Criminal law amendments need to be reviewed
A proposed amendment to Sri Lanka’s criminal law has caused a furore among human rights activists and lawyers. The amendment to the Criminal Procedure Code, affords legal assistance to a suspect detained by the police, but then it seems, only after the suspect’s statement is recorded. The objection to this giving a concession with one [...]
Mobiles: If they are smart, be smarter
For some time now, Sri Lanka’s mobile phone users have been charged for value added services that a majority of them did not knowingly subscribe for or want. It is not clear how long the scam has been going on. The service providers are vague, the regulator only just found out, and there is no [...]
Non Alignment: Will Lanka abandon principles
Not many seem to have noticed it; nor would any to have missed the news; but the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) began its 17th Heads of Government summit yesterday. Sri Lanka, a one-time chairperson of the now 120-member nation Movement, the second largest grouping to the United Nations Organisation, was not represented by either the President [...]
Are People losing faith in elections?
The two main political parties, the UNP and the SLFP at 70 and 65 respectively, celebrated their anniversaries over the past two weeks. In the meantime, however, the National Elections Commission (NEC) has re-launched a campaign to get eligible voters to register for next year because the level of interest has seemingly, waned. That disinterest [...]