Why Amunugama is the most qualified to pen ‘Dreams of Change’
Recently I was honoured by a request from my good friend Dr. Sarath Amunugama to review his latest literary contribution namely “Dreams of Change” which deals with issues of land, labour and conflict in Sri Lanka. This excellent publication of 450 pages is a collection of essays done by Dr. Amunugama over a period of [...]
Yahapalanaya or Subha-Yasa Palanaya?
A friend of mine told me years ago that Sri Lankans always live in a historical perspective. I was not old enough or matured enough to understand this then. Not that I am matured now but old enough to realise what my friend meant. True, we Sri Lankans love to read and repeat our history. [...]
Implementing key principles in the delimitation of electoral boundaries
This article is a follow up to the article titled ‘Serving Citizens through Effective Delimitation of Geographical Boundaries in Sri Lanka (The Sunday Times of October 28, 2018). It will attempt to explain why certain key principles of delimitation are critically important and how they can be best implemented. The focus will be on the [...]
Will member states help offset US funding cuts to UN?
UNITED NATIONS, (IPS) – The speculation that the Trump administration plans to reduce its mandatory assessed financial contributions to the UN’s regular budget was implicitly confirmed when the US president told delegates last September that Washington “is working to shift more of our funding, from assessed contributions to voluntary contributions, so that we can target [...]
Essay competition on Turkey’s role as a regional power
The Turkish Embassy with the cooperation of the Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum (SLMMF) will organise an essay competition with the aim of rewarding career journalists and prospective journalists for their knowledge in international relations. The competition is open to career journalists and students of journalism. The topic of the essay is “Turkey and her [...]
Can dissolution of parliament and elections bring political stability?
Dissolution of Parliament followed by elections is the magic potion that can cure the raging political crisis in one dose, is the belief of the Rajapaksa faithful. If an election can be held within a short time, it may resolve the current political impasse. But to hope for an election to end the plague affecting [...]
Sri Lanka China Society signs three MoUs with Chinese friendship associations
The China International Friendship Cities Conference was held at Wuhan in the Hubei Province in China recently. This conference was jointly hosted by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, the China International Friendship Cities Association and the Wuhan Municipal People’s Government. Jinith de Silva, Vice President of Sri Lanka China Society, participated [...]
Act now or face 100 more years of child marriage, economists warn
LONDON, Dec 8 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – It will take 100 years to end child marriage if current trends continue, economists warned on Friday, urging governments to spend more on tackling a problem that affects 12 million girls every year. A study by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) found global rates of [...]
The world George H.W. Bush made
CAMBRIDGE – I have worked for four US presidents, Democrats and Republicans alike, and perhaps the most important thing I have learned along the way is that little of what we call history is inevitable. What happens in this world is the result of what people choose to do and choose not to do when [...]