Society

Words that brought me back to life: “Your baby is alive!”

Admin January 20, 2020

SARANYA SUBRAMANIYAM Latha lost 4 children and her husband in the 2004 Tsunami. This is her story. I was standing on the brink of despair as my entire family was lost in the tsunami. But the word “Your child is safe” brought me back to life. Everybody was grief stricken looking at the situation

Society

Excelling without Special Needs Assistance This Young Girl is an Example to Us All

Admin January 20, 2020

VAIRAMUTHU THUSHANTHAN A young goat herder from Batticaloa is in need of special needs but excels without it Dilani controls a herd of 30 goats. She shouts ‘Hey … This way, this way …. Go .. Go’. We could even find dried elephant dung on the path. As a herder working on lands where wild […]

Society

Misunderstanding: The Root of Our Problems

Admin January 20, 2020

JAYASIRI PEDURUARACHCHI How reconciliation prevails in the town of Akurana after the Easter Sunday Attacks Traders in the Akurana town were affected by the recent incidents of ethnic violence. Now they have recovered from the crisis and they have re-launched their businesses with new hopes. The reconciliation that prevails in the town is the cause […]

Society

Activism in the School Sector A Sinhalese Fights for the Rights of Muslim Teachers

Admin January 7, 2020

UPUL THAMMITA In conversation with the Secretary of Inter-faith Committee of Kandy, Renuka Maliyagoda Future generations are the lifeline of a nation. Protecting teachers who educate such generations then is our national responsibility. Renuka Maliyagoda is a retired teacher who fights for the rights of such teachers. She is the secretary of the Inter-faith Committee […]

Society

Bound by Humanity Brothers of One Family

Admin January 7, 2020

UPEKSHA UDUWARALLA A story of reconciliation from inside a drug rehabilitation Centre in Sri Lanka They belong to one nation but they follow different religions. They are also all former drug addicts and have been living here for a year like brothers of one family who have no race, caste or creed differences that prevail […]

Society

A Story from North Acceptance, Freedom & Development

Admin January 7, 2020

PRASAD PURNAMAL JAYAMANNA “We only need acceptance, freedom and development.” says Nadaraja Sivamalan from Omanthai “We suffered immensely due to the war. We need no more wars. We want to see this country developed. Also, we trust the new President will take care of us. We only need acceptance, freedom and development.” said Nadaraja Sivamalan […]

Society

Against all Odds Fruits of a Barren Land

Admin January 7, 2020

KARUNARATHNA GAMAGE In Polonnaruwa, Samantha and his wife have found inventive ways to water the barren land and keep it evergreen. Looking at Samantha’s farmland, one realized that the forces of nature have no effect here. Samantha and his wife have found inventive ways to water the barren land and keep it evergreen. We met […]

Society

Seed-Bombing for Regeneration Re-foresting War-Torn Forestlands

Admin December 13, 2019

NATALIE SOYSA In conversation with conservationist and academic A.M.Riaz on his mission to reforest postwar Sri Lanka A.M.Riaz Ahmed, Senior Lecturer in Zoology, Department of Applied Sciences, South-Eastern University has been busy planting seedlings for the regeneration of plants and forests in war torn areas of Sri Lanka, in addition to his interests in botany […]

Society

Addressing Rights Organizations Human Rights Can’t be Won by Fighting Alone

Admin December 13, 2019

KALAVARSHNY KANAGARATNAM In conversation with Surangi Ariyawansa, Executive Director of the Center for Human Rights “When we get complaints related to human rights violations, we jointly appealing to the Human Rights Commission is the way forward. Human and civil rights organizations need to work together as a network,” says Surangi Ariyawansa, Executive Director of the

Society

In Conversation with Mohammed Ali Razik Fareed What are Racial Divisions Next to Life and Death?

Admin December 10, 2019

GAYAN YADDEHIGE It’s easy to be divisive when we are healthy, but in times of sickness or need all divisions in caste, religion and ethnicity become meaningless. Mohammed Ali Razik Fareed, better known as, Razik Thambi, lives 100 meters away from the Mahaweli River in Kandy. This is the river of his childhood and he […]