We further request the Government to commence such community consultations as a matter of urgency on what type of housing the war affected communities are seeking. Such community consultations will highlight pressing issues such as landlessness and solutions to resolve issues arising through owner driven housing. We further reiterate to use the Rs. 136 billion…
'kathika' social, cultural and political review
From politics
People should have the “Right and Space for Participation” in Constitution Making
The parliament will establish a Committee of Parliament on 09 January, according to the Order Book No.01 issued on 21 December, 2015 that will consist of members of parliament and will be called the “Constitutional Assembly”. Purpose of this Constitutional Assembly is spelled out as [quote] deliberating and seeking the views and advice of the…
The Left and Mass Media in the 20th Century – Ajith Samaranayake
“Today, moreover when the newspapers have become more subtle and trivial in their handling of politics (throwing open their columns to guest writers of the extra-parliamentary Left such as Dr. Vickramabahu Karunaratne) while peddling political gossip rather than issues; and television talk-shows figure all kinds of political opinion straddling the entire spectrum of ideas (if…
On Religion and Violence by Charles Taylor
The 20th century has been marked in a horrifying way by “categorical violence”-a violence directed against people on the basis of their belonging to a certain group. Categorical violence has three distinguishing features: excessiveness, the discourse of purification and a ritual element. There are two views of the cause of categorical violence which I wish…
Aftermath of Counter Revolution: Revolutionary Time in David Scott’s Omens of Adversity – Thushara Hewage
Text of the introductory presentation made by Dr. Thushara Hewage, Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Ottawa at the seminar on The Politics of Memory and a Critique of Transitional Justice held on Wednesday 3rd June 2015, at Department of Political Science and Public Policy, Faculty of Arts, University of Colombo. The pieces…
Sovereignty, Port City & The Dalai Lama – Gananath Obeyesekere
Several weeks ago I had the privilege of attending a conference organized by colleagues in the University of Delhi and presided by His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama. The conference itself was on how children’s secular education could be transformed in order to bring in values of compassion and caring sorely lacking in…
'කතිකා' සංවාද මණ්ඩපය 'kathika' sanvada mandapaya 