How Beijing’s billions are buying up the Commonwealth
When Tuesday morning dawns in Barbados, British influence in the Caribbean will retreat one more step as the island becomes a republic, ending almost 400 years of loyalty to the Crown. The Queen will be head of state of one fewer Commonwealth realm. Barbados has already drifted away from Britain, and in common with dozens [...]
Toastmaster Sandun becomes first World Champion in Impromptu Speaking
Sri Lankan Sandun Anton Fernando won big at the Worldwide Impromptu Speaking Extravaganza (WISE) beating speakers around the world to be crowned as the first-ever world champion in impromptu speaking. Fernando was feted and felicitated at his home club – the Smedley Toastmasters Club’s – installation, at the Ramada Hotel, last Thursday (2). In his [...]
Is a nuclear-weapons-free zone in the Middle East an exercise in futility?
UNITED NATIONS, (IPS) – Israel’s nuclear capability is best characterised, idiomatically speaking, as the “elephant in the room” – an obvious fact but intentionally ignored. A Wall Street Journal cartoon once depicted a group of animals huddled together in the jungle with the elephant complaining: “I don’t know why they keep ignoring me when I [...]
Remembering the legendary physiologist, Prof. K.N. Seneviratne
Professor Keerthi Nissanka Seneviratne was born in Elpitiya, Galle on November 22, 1929 as the second son of Dr. Robert and Mrs Laura Seneviratne. He had his primary and secondary education at Royal College, Colombo and won the Arunachalam Prize for General Knowledge in 1946 and 1947. He obtained his MBBS degree with honours in [...]
All Ceylon Women’s Buddhist Congress AGM
The All Ceylon Women’s Buddhist Congress’ 72nd annual general meeting, which was postponed in July due to the Covid-19 pandemic, will now be held on January 22, 2022. The ACWBC requests members to send in their nominations before January 6, 2022 and contact the office on 0112296411 for more details. The positions to be filled [...]
Global coal hypocrisy
NEW DELHI – India has somehow emerged as the villain of last month’s United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), blamed for resisting cuts to coal consumption even as toxic air envelops its capital, New Delhi. The country’s supposed crime in Glasgow was to join China in insisting on a last-minute change to the conference’s final [...]