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Home » ColumnsMangala’s fag gift to Chinese ‘locals’ on World Tobacco Day
For a man who declared only last week without anyone prompting him to put his foot and mouth in the dung, that Sri Lanka is not a Sinhalese Buddhist nation that the majority clan can lay claim to despite the historical antecedents that mark its origins and notch every mile post of its annals with [...]
Governor Sally runs into storm at Kalutara
There was uproar in the Kalutara District Development Committee over the presence of Western Province Governor Azath Sally. Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) Members walked out of the meeting, saying it was a security risk. They wanted him to leave the premises. When it did not happen, they walked out. It was President Maithripala Sirisena [...]
A country very much in need of a win
My dear Dimuth and the cricket team, I am writing to you as you embark on a World Cup, determined to make your mark and bring honour to your country, though, with all due respect, no one seriously expects you to bring the World Cup home, as Arjuna did on one sultry night in Lahore [...]
Prospects of economic recovery in the second half of 2019
June is a critical month when peaceful conditions, security and law and order must be firmly established to enable an economic recovery in the second half of the year. The restoration of public confidence and an international perception that the country has returned to normal are crucial for an economic recovery. An economic recovery of [...]
On the importance of countering false political narratives
In the wake of Sri Lanka’s Easter Sunday attacks, we have one (Muslim) Minister confessing to calling the Army Commander to ‘inquire into’ the fate of a Muslim suspect arrested following the Easter Sunday attacks and another (Sinhala) Minister being so bold as to transport Sinhalese rioters attacking Muslim shops in Kurunegala from one police [...]
Gone too far with SOFA
So President Sirisena has put his foot down on the sofa. No more talk about sofas, he has ordered returning from China last month after reportedly signing three agreements, of which the cabinet, parliament and public know little or nothing. The sofa he is angered over– and rightly so, too –is the one the Americans [...]
President reviews US-Lanka defence agreements
Calls the Sunday Times Political Editor and former Defence Secretary to clarify matters amidst protests by even religious leaders PSC hearings and live telecast stir row; Sirisena calls Ranil, as relationship hits new low SLFP wants early talks with SLPP on common alliance; Sirisena still hopeful about him being common candidate for presidential poll, but [...]
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