Ranjith Soysa, Spokesperson, GSLF

Introduction

CountryWatch (www.countrywatch.com)  is the publisher of several country-specific  data and intelligence reports apparently for the use of corporations, government agencies, universities, schools, libraries and individuals and says it provides  up-to-date news and information on each of the recognized countries of the world.”

CountryWatch further claims that its management has extensive international business experience” while members of the editorial department have strong academic backgrounds.”   It also claims to provide critical” country-specific intelligence data to a global audience including public and private sector organizations with overseas operations and global interests.”

Reviewing the PDF online of 2017 Country Review on Sri Lanka” (Read: SL Country Watch), we found  misinformation, errors, and even some old data.

As a publication aimed at the academic and business communities, CountryWatch should be judicious and objective in the content it presents.  Yet, very strong bias against the former Rajapaksa administration runs through the pages.  Uncorroborated, even false, reports used by Rajapaksa’s political opponents to vilify the former president have found their way into this report.  While editors are certainly entitled to their opinion, passing opinion and commentary as facts seriously undermines the integrity of any publication.

In general, the publication lacks critical analysis, is not well organized,  and is an assortment of material apparently culled from various sources, most of it not even related to Sri Lanka.

Page after page of general information under topics such as Environmental Overview” pad the size of the publication but do nothing to enhance the Sri Lanka-specific knowledge its readers are likely seeking.

The same could be said of the Editor’s Note” – which is repeated word for word  on pages 2, 78, 122, & 145: adds pages, nothing else.

The fact that President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s name has been misspelled (as Rajpaksa) 69 times throughout the report doesn’t speak well for editorial oversight.

We are politically unaffiliated and independent Sri Lankan expatriate groups.  Our only purpose in putting the following detailed comments together is to correct inaccuracies and present facts omitted or misrepresented by CountryWatch. .

Contributors:

Global Sri Lankan Forum Inc., Melbourne, Australia

Sri Lanka-US Political Affairs Council (SLUPAC), California, USA

Comments may be sent to:

Ranjith Soysa, Spokesperson, GSLF (ranbourne@gmail.com)

Start reading critique on 2017 Country Review on Sri Lanka

Dismissing the record of a popular Asian leader as spurious” – Page 76