Category: Statement

Sri Lanka is in the grip of a collapsing economy causing immense suffering to its people. Acute food, medicine, and fuel shortages are crippling the day-to-day lives of the people, giving way to despair and frustration and driving them to the streets to express their dissent against a government that has failed them. This crumbling… Continue reading Call for Urgent Action by the Sri Lanka Women’s NGO Forum (SLWNGOF) to alleviate the suffering of the people of Sri Lanka

The current momentWe are witness to an unprecedented happening in the postcolonial history of this country. Countrywide protests are calling for a change in governance and economic undertakings, including the management of public and social goods like education, health and utilities. The protests are a result of the severe shortages brought on by an imminent… Continue reading Federation of University Teachers’ Association speaks up on current crisis

Sri Lanka is currently experiencing the worst economic crisis in its post-independence history. Foreign reserves of the country have dangerously dwindled, incapacitating the government to import essential supplies such as fuel, cooking gas, fertiliser, and medicine, among other things. As a result, Sri Lankans are going through unprecedented suffering. Severe shortages of almost all essential… Continue reading Statement from the Social Scientists’ Association on Sri Lanka’s Current Crisis

We are witness today to events that are unprecedented in our postcolonial history. Hundreds of thousands of people are taking to the streets spontaneously in protest; in an extraordinary demonstration of democratic fervour. The calls for change are loud and spectacular. They are driven by anger at a small elite group —the Rajapaksas, who have… Continue reading The democratic moment today: A call for action and reflection

A history of failed economic policies and continued mismanagementSri Lanka is currently facing the worst economic crisis in its post-independence history. The country is short of foreign exchange reserves to pay for imports for many essentials, including fuel, which is affecting the functioning of the economy and crippling the lives of its people. Sri Lanka… Continue reading Sri Lanka’s Economic Crisis: a feminist response to the unfolding humanitarian crisis – Feminist Collective for Economic Justice

Decades of majoritarian politics, and the more recent descent towards authoritarianism and militarisation, have eroded the foundations of our democracy. They have numbed us to the violence in our daily lives and desensitised us to how sections of our citizenry are targeted. Over a year has passed since Hejaaz Hizbullah and Ahnaf Jazeem were arrested,… Continue reading A call to action against the detention of Hejaaz Hizbullah and Ahnaf Jazeem, anti-Muslim violence, and attacks on democracy

Sri Lanka, along with many other low- and middle-income countries, has experienced a series of financial shocks due to both external and internal factors. Global forces have caused food and energy import costs to soar and interest rates to rise, even as the currency has devalued significantly. These shocks,  along  with  a  history of  policy… Continue reading Statement by academics on dealing with Sri Lankan debt, January 2023