Centre for Policy Alternatives on 23 April, 2018

Weaponising 280 characters: What 200,000 tweets and 4,000 bots tell us about state of Twitter in Sri Lanka

April 23rd, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) is pleased to announce the release of its latest report on social media, Weaponising 280 characters: What 200,000 tweets and 4,000 bots tell us about state of Twitter in Sri Lanka. The report is available for immediate download here. The report is a collaboration between […]

Categories: Civic MediaNew MediaReports
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 12 April, 2018

Facebook responds to open letter from Sri Lankan civil society

A day after our open letter to Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook representatives from Delhi, India, on his behalf, responded. The email is reproduced below in full. It is worth noting at the outset that this is the first official response from Facebook we have received after many years of engaging with the company around the issues […]

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Centre for Policy Alternatives on 10 April, 2018

Open letter to Facebook: Implement Your Own Community Standards

April 10th 2018, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) is issuing an open letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, as he prepares to testify before Congress on April 10. In this letter, CPA together with other members of civil society call on Facebook to combat social issues including gender-based violence and hate […]

Categories: Civic MediaDocumentsNew Media
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 22 March, 2018

Observations on the Bill to Amend the Voluntary Social Service Organisations (Registration and Supervision) Act No. 31 of 1980

The Cabinet of Ministers approved on 20 February 2018 a proposal to introduce amendments to the Voluntary Social Service Act (VSSO) No. 31 of 1980. The proposed amendments contain far-reaching consequences on the activities and finances of civil society and if enacted in its present form will have a chilling effect on a range of private […]

Categories: Documents
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 16 March, 2018

Understanding a State of Emergency: March 2018

Sri Lanka’s last state of emergency lasted for 28 years, and was terminated in August 2011, having continuously been extended by governments since it was first declared in 1983. On March 6th 2018, President Maithripala Sirisena declared a state of emergency in order to address and contain the violence unfolding in the Kandy district, where violent […]

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Centre for Policy Alternatives on 6 March, 2018

CPA Calls Authorities to Take Swift Action to Prevent Further Violence and to Arrest and Prosecute Individuals Advocating National, Racial and Religious Hatred

March 06th 2018, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) condemns the recent violence unleashed against the Muslim community, which has now claimed the life of Abdul Basith, a youth from Teldeniya and destroyed several Muslim homes and businesses as well as several mosques in the Kandy area. This recent spate of violence […]

Categories: Documents
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 28 February, 2018

CPA Strongly Condemns Recent Violence in Ampara and Urges Swift Action by Authorities

28th February 2018, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) strongly condemns the recent attacks on a mosque and several places of business in Ampara on the 26th of February and urges the relevant authorities to take action to prevent the spread of violence and to hold perpetrators to account within the existing […]

Categories: Press Releases