China’s triangulation gambit
NEW HAVEN – History’s turning points are rarely evident with great clarity. But the February 4 joint statement of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping as the Winter Olympics opened in Beijing may be an exception – signaling a new turning point in a new Cold War. Triangulation was America’s decisive strategic [...]
Burying Indian Ocean Peace Zone in the high seas
UNITED NATIONS (IPS) — A former Indian ambassador once told an American audience that one of the biggest misconceptions about the Indian Ocean is that it belongs to India. “Not so, but we wish we did”, he said, amidst laughter. But rising big power politics in the region has virtually doomed a longstanding proposal for [...]
The Reader’s Digest as propaganda: A review 71 years ago
I was rummaging through university students’ magazines of the 1930s-50s in the Ceylon Room of the Main Library of University of Peradeniya, when I happened upon this writing by Tissa Devendra in Ceylon University Magazine. It had been written 71 years ago in 1951, when Mr. Devendra was an undergraduate of the University of Ceylon. [...]
Weaponising human rights: The dilemma for Sri Lanka at UNHRC
Beginning February 28, the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) will consider a written report on Sri Lanka by the Human Rights High Commissioner at its 49th Session, in Geneva. This prospective written Report was required by the UNHRC through a Resolution passed at its 46th Session in March 2021 (46/1). Concerns about Human Rights in [...]
The big question at this year’s Oscars – will anyone watch the ceremony?
When The Power of the Dog took 12 Oscar nominations on Tuesday, the key question for this year’s awards became not what would win – a clean sweep for Jane Campion’s western is now looking inevitable – but whether anyone would watch it happen. Last year’s ceremony was a muted, socially distanced affair held at [...]
The President we never had
“My late uncle Upali’s signature facet was his love for speed. This he applied in expanding his business empire. He bought a Lear Jet and obtained the Red Passport as Chairman of GCEC because he was a man for speed and a fast decision maker. Even his other indulgences including his love for Horse and [...]