මළ ජූලි හතකින්වත් පාඩමක් ෙනා ගන්නා…

Photo credit: Tamilnation.org

My article deals with the social and political after-effects of one of the most despicable episodes in Sri Lankan history – the ethnics riots of July 1983. I examine how in the intervening years, Sri Lanka’s political establishment has failed to address the growth of hate and violence, and how even certain sections of the religious establisment now see and promote war and violence as viable means to peace. Sections of the Buddhist clergy are notable in this regard.

We also see that in combatting the terrorism of the LTTE, we have now already unquestioningly entertained the growth of political terrorism. Terror against terror defines the age we live …

continue reading

“Then why the hell are we at war?”

So blurted out a person next to me at a meeting recently on Federalism in Colombo, at which Bimal Ratnayake said that even if the last member of the LTTE was killed, Sri Lanka would never attain peace. For my thoughts on the capture of Thoppigala and the context to Bimal’s statement, read my article in full here (in Sinhala).

Photo credit: Agron, from Portraits of Displacement

Worldwide, those rendered homeless and destitute by violent conflict is growing. According to UNHCR statistics, the figure of Internally Displaced Persons stood at over 32 million at the end of 2006. In Sri Lanka’s case, many of those displaced by the tsunami were communities already displaced by war. This double displacement exacerbated their trauma and continues to date. My article end with impressions of a photo exhibition of refugees and IDPs by Gemunu Amarasinghe.

Read my article here.

In my first article to Groundviews I examine the decline of polity and society and the sheer wastefulness of war. In examining the role of the media, I bemoan the fact that many do not address them to explore the root causes of terrorism in Sri Lanka.

Looking back at the history of ethnic discrimination and the marginalisation of communities through parochial language legislation, I end my article with the submission that we will not be able to create a plural and diverse society in Sri Lanka if we don’t first address ourselves to the task of imagining peace.

Read my article in full, written in Sinhala, here.