CPA Comms Officer on 20 February, 2024 High atop Vedukkunaari Hill in Sri Lanka’s Vavuniya district, an ancient temple stands at the precipice of a religious and legal storm. Revered by the local Tamil community as the Vedukkunaari Aathi Lingeswarar Temple for over 3,000 years, it now finds itself embroiled in a complex dispute with the Department of Archaeology, which claims the […]
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 12 April, 2018 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 […]
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 10 April, 2018 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 […]
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 13 July, 2016 by Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu There is no getting away from the issue of international participation in the accountability mechanism, specifically that of foreign judges. The 2015 Geneva resolution co-sponsored by the Sri Lankan government explicitly allows for this in terms of the active participation of internationals but does not spell out their precise role. The issue keeps surfacing with […]
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 22 June, 2016 A Matter of Trust and Confidence Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu In the transition from the populist authoritarian recent past to government conducted with governance, public trust and confidence in institutions and processes of government is pivotal. That trust and confidence is what provides the oxygen for the transition and the reform it entails – a diminution […]
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 22 June, 2016 Let’s talk in the New Year; the Government to the People Dr.Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu It has been some years since I wrote a column for a mainstream newspaper. Looking back on it, I gave up writing for a combination of reasons, which oscillated from being bored and tired of saying the same thing to focusing on […]
Centre for Policy Alternatives on 31 March, 2016 Land is a key issue for reconciliation in Sri Lanka. Reparations including the restitution of land, if implemented in the correct manner, can contribute to long-term peace building efforts and prevent further marginalisation of people who were affected by the war. With promises by the government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) to initiate reforms including with […]