sumane

Drugs, Crimes and Politics Sumanasiri Liyanage While waiting at the airport lounge for Delhi bound flight, I was practicing a bad habit of eavesdropping to a conversation between two guys just sitting behind me. It appeared that they were from Negambo area as so much inside information not excluding rumors, half-truths and total lies had come out of their conversation. The focus or rather the starting point of the conversation was the search of a local politician Nimal Lansa’s house with the order of the IGP but without a warrant issued by the magistrate. Hence, one positive thing that came out through this event was that even the high-level politicians tend to accept a common ethico-legal norm that magistrate’s warrant is a requirement prior to the arrest of a person or search of a place. Will that norm be applied by the police hereafter in case of the arrest of an ordinary person or search of her/his house? Sorry, I am deviating from my topic. Why did the police special task force m...

Crisis of global capitalism and OWS October 23, 2011, 6:43 pm   While we gather here to discuss the crisis of global capitalism, the workers, students, unemployed youth and other marginalized and excluded people in Western capitalist countries have begun a massive protest against banks, finance and insurance companies and stockbrokers. The Occupy Wall Street (OWS) has gathered momentum as many big cities have organized their own OWS campaign. It has been reported that in Italy, protesters fought with the police. The fragile economies of almost all Western capitalist countries are yet to come out of the economic crisis that surfaced in September 2008 with the collapse of mega banking and financial companies. Growth rates were below one percent; inflation and unemployment rising. As one woman protester informed us angrily, "I have a degree, but I make coffee". People have expressed their anger over the system, the system that has failed to ensure a reasonable living standard a...

  The meaning of Sarkozy October 16, 2011, 6:40 pm   One may wonder whether translating a book on an election held in 2007 in France and its results is of use and relevance to Sri Lanka. I think Vangeesa Sumanasekera’s effort is welcome for two reasons. As history has shown since French Revolution, French political events have universally significant theoretical and political ramifications. Secondly, if we substitute a name of a present or past political leader (like Obama, Blair, Bush or Mahinda Rajapaksa) who exercised governmental power for Sarkozy in the title, book still makes sense. Hence the book has a universal relevance. Alain Badiou, the author of the book, The Meaning of Sarkozy (MS) is a French Marxist philosopher. The first chapter of the book was written just before the 2007 French presidential election that made Sarkozy the president of France. The last two chapters were later developed in his recent book, The Communist Hypothesis (CH). Like in many countries, ...

Accountability to whom? Inversing the Order September 26, 2011, 7:12 pm   The term ‘accountability’ is in vogue these days. Advice that comes as a ‘friendly pressure’ as Robert OBlake puts it is that Sri Lanka should be accountable to what happened in the last days of its war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Although it has not been expressed in explicit terms, the implication is that Sri Lanka and other poor countries should be held accountable to the Imperialist West usually disguised under some such coy pseudonym as ‘the international community’, ‘free world’, ‘democratic countries’, ‘liberal democracies’ etc. My Longman Dictionary defines ‘accountable’ as ‘responsible for the effects of your actions and willing to explain or be criticized for them’. In my opinion, ‘accountability’ in the current conflict discourse goes beyond this simple and uncomplicated meaning. The imperialist countries and civil society organizations funded by them have demanded that an...

India, China and Rest of the World September 18, 2011, 6:58 pm   Many seem to ask if Sri Lanka is moving towards China away from India. Those who answer the question in the affirmative hold two opposite views. While the first group seems to be happy about Sri Lanka’s increasing ties, economic and otherwise, with China, the other appears to see it as a danger because our closer ties with China would result in antagonizing India and the West. Sri Lankan foreign policy, especially when the UNP was in power, was oriented towards the West. Although the SLFP-led governments adopted more balanced foreign policy regime, they always valued the importance of close links with the USA and its allies. During the past six years, we have witnessed a kind of paradigm shift in the Sri Lankan foreign policy placing more emphasis on the countries in the region. As I have argued on many occasions, this is a positive change. Where could India and China be located in this new foreign policy shift? Can ...

August 14, 2011, 8:24 pm   How do we understand the present crisis of capitalism? Can it be grasped theoretically using the categories of neo-liberal economics? What is the sound theoretical perspective that helps us understand the crisis? Of course there is no mono-causal theory of crisis since crises are invariably caused by multiple factors. The most pronounced and seemingly correct explanation of the crisis has been directed to what is generally called over-financialization. Referring to rioting youth in Tottenham, London, the Daily Mail called them "nihilistic and feral teenagers". Are the teenagers feral? Or, is it the capitalistic system as it has failed in the capitalistic West to provide a secure future for their young people? According to Professor Tony Chapman, only 49% of young people in the UK believe that they would have secure jobs in five years’ time. What have we witnessed since 2008? Credit rating of the USA was downgraded by the Standard & Poor fr...

TNA is very justified in issuing an ultimatum on talks to the govt 8 August 2011, 9:34 pm by Sumanasiri Liyanage A t the time of writing, it appears that the talks between the UPFA government and the Tamil National Alliance are on the verge of collapse. It has been reported that the TNA wants the government to address some issues if the latter is willing to continue talks. The government’s argument varies. Some Ministers have said that the issues raised by the TNA are fundamental so that 10 days period is not adequate to take a decision on the issues of such importance. On the other hand, Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva has informed us that the issues raised by the TNA can be placed before the proposed Parliamentary Select Committee for discussion. If the government wants more time and can inform the time period it seeks, I am sure the TNA will accept that, provided it does not appear as a dilatory tactic. However, if the issues should be placed before the select committee as the M...