By Raj Gonsalkorale It was always known that the self-appointed icons of democracy only pay lip service to democracy and that self- interest and the singular desire to control a global agenda of their choosing takes precedence over everything else. The recent G7 meeting confirmed this. The G7 countries and their invitees gathered in the […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale The President and the government is urged to at least postpone the decision made to ban the import of inorganic fertiliser at least for one year until it has had time to consult widely with experts and arrive at a more informed decision. Depriving some crops with inorganic fertiliser in the immediate […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Actual independence for the dominion of Ceylon came on February 4, 1948, when the constitution of 1947 went into effect. The constitution provided for a bicameral legislature with a popularly elected House of Representatives and a Senate that was partly nominated and partly elected indirectly by members of the House of Representatives. A prime minister and his cabinet, chosen […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Foreign direct investment (FDI) is an integral part of an open and effective international economic system and a major catalyst to development. Yet, the benefits of FDI do not accrue automatically and evenly across countries, sectors and local communities. National policies and the international investment architecture matter for attracting FDI to a […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Today, 21st May 2021 is the 29th death anniversary of this unassuming colossus who perhaps had done more for the people of Sri Lanka than many others before him and after him The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing – Edmund Burke Edmund […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Palestinians will yet again commemorate the Nakba (‘catastrophe’), a term that refers to the ethnic cleansing of Palestine in 1948 and the Palestinians’ loss of their homeland. The mass expulsion of Palestinians was overwhelming in its scope. Arab Palestine was erased and replaced with Jewish Israel. It is estimated that between 750,000 […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale The norms of society are the sum of our collective values and priorities – as society shapes us, we shape society. In addition to a sense of right and wrong for personal action, individuals possess a sense of right and wrong for collective action – what might be called social conscience. Individual […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale The burqa ban announcement caused a stir among Muslims, who saw it as yet another attack on their community. In the past few months, the government has undertaken a number of controversial measures under the banner of fighting extremism, which have increasingly intimidated the Muslim population and disregarded rule of law principles – Farzana […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Glory of technology is such that no one will object to introducing technology to land registries.  But will the land owners have their rights protected? We only admire the glory of technology as a duck gliding on water without seeing the paddling underneath. Land owners need to be alerted that their ownership rights may […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Yet it remains the case that if Nigerian public and private sector players doing business with the Chinese elephant could improve their negotiating skills and be more ambitious about their negotiating positions, making better use of Nigeria’s ‘superpower’ qualities to minimise the drawbacks of its antlike ones, the future of Nigeria–China relations […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Sinharaja Forest Reserve is a forest reserve and a biodiversity hotspot in Sri Lanka. It is of international significance and has been designated a Biosphere Reserve and World Heritage Site by UNESCO. According to International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Sinharaja is the country’s last viable area of primary tropical rainforest. More than 60% of the trees are endemic and many of them […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Following are some posts that are being circulated depicting what are labelled as Fake Posts and Original Posts. Looking at these, it does appear there is a deliberate campaign to discredit the government by interested parties who are resorting to unprofessional, unethical anti-national tactics. This needs to be investigated as a matter […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale The UN deputy human rights chief and the independent expert on Myanmar have called for targeted sanctions against the leaders of what they both described as the coup that took place in the country last week, as the Human Rights Council met in special session on Friday to discuss the ongoing crisis […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Hitler rose to power through the Nazi Party, an organization he forged after returning as a wounded veteran from the annihilating trench warfare of World War I. He and other patriotic Germans were outraged and humiliated by the harsh terms of the Treaty of Versailles, which the Allies compelled the new German […]

Raj Gonsalkorale Oprah Winfrey’s interview with Meghan and Harry pulls in 17.1 million viewers on CBS. Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, speak with Oprah Winfrey for a two-hour telecast on CBS Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex and Meghan the Duchess of Sussex are troubled individuals. One cannot but feel for them in their hour of reflection, tinged […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken today encouraged the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to support the resolution on Sri Lanka stating that the ‘lack of accountability for past atrocities in Sri Lanka – Daily Mirror Sri Lanka’ The US Secretary of State seems to give an indication as to what […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you – Matthew 7:1,2 The entire world needs to respect human rights. That should be a just and natural phenomenon that all human beings […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale The Latin phrase Quo Vadis denotes an episode from the life of Saint Peter, as told in the New Testament Apocrypha and the ‘Golden Legend’. Peter fled from Rome during the persecution of Christians under the emperor Nero; as he was travelling along the Appian Way he met Christ in a vision. […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale A man is not called wise because he talks and talks again; but is he peaceful, loving and fearless then he is in truth called wise. Even as a solid rock is unshaken by the wind, so are the wise unshaken by praise or blame – Buddha It appears that labelling oneself […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale The words of Abraham Lincoln to honour the soldiers that sacrificed their lives in order that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth” were spoken at Gettysburg, but these words apply as well to the countless soldiers that died for the cause of democracy in […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale ….and the White House will be occupied by a downright fool and a complete narcissistic moron –H L Mencken 1920 It is 97 years since H L Mencken’s comment was reportedly published in the Baltimore Evening Sun on the 26th of July 1920. Who was this person? As per the Wikipedia Henry […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale The year 2020 ended with the COVID pandemic raging unabated, not just in Sri Lanka but throughout the world and bringing down the world as we all knew it. Economies of countries from the superrich to the very poor have all crumbled and health services are bursting at the seams. Education has […]

Raj Gonsalkorale True Islam is derived from the Quran and not from the traditions or cultures of Muslim people -www.quran–islam.org Burial of Muslims who have died of COVID has become a huge political issue. Science and religion seem to have been overtaken by raw politics. All this while the pandemic is raging in the country […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale There is speculation that caveats, the one thing that protects genuine private land owners from fraudsters who manage to sell their land with bogus land titles, and protects genuine third parties from exploitation by land owners, is under threat and that legislation is being drawn to change land registration laws that permit […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale In July of 64 A.D., a great fire ravaged Rome for six days, destroying 70 percent of the city and leaving half its population homeless. According to a well-known expression, Rome’s emperor at the time, the decadent and unpopular Nero, fiddled while Rome burned.” The expression has a double meaning: Not only did […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale At the outset, it needs to be stated emphatically that the argument for a comprehensive land management policy is not to deter or prevent the economic wellbeing of people who are engaged in agriculture or to prevent or deter greater private sector participation in agricultural projects in the country. In fact, the […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Dear Minister Many eminent lawyers and even more concerned citizens have written on the need for a comprehensive land policy for the country. The writer articulated this in an article published in the Daily FT (Sri Lanka desperately needs a strategic, transparent and comprehensive State land management policy-http://www.ft.lk/columns/Sri-Lanka-desperately-needs-a-strategic-transparent-and-comprehensive-State-land-management-policy/4-709028). The writer even sent […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Those whom the Gods wish to destroy they first make them mad Donald Trump has taken the USA down an abyss of despair and duplicity. Domestic divisions and international disorder dominated the Trump era. Many questioned the sanity of Trump’s approach to governance, nationally and internationally. Now, more than 80 million voters […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale In respect to the considerable research done on the quotation noted above, Roger Pearse, in his blog (https://www.roger-pearse.com/weblog/2015/10/31/is-those-whom-the-gods-wish-to-destroy-they-first-make-mad-a-classical-quotation/comment-page-1/), says I learn that in fact it is a note on Sophocles Antigone, l.620, by a scholiast.  The idea itself is present in Homer, Odyssey, IX, 492-3. In the tragedy Antigone, of Sophocles, in verses 620-623, it said something similar: […]

By Raj Gonsalkorale Bim Saviya, the MCC Agreement and now a directive on residual” land has muddied the waters in relation to State Land policy and management Land management in Sri Lanka appears to be all over the place. Several ministries and government departments appear to be responsible for State land management including for forests […]