Library

E-Version of the Social Justice Magazine

We are forwarding herewith the e-version of the social justice magazine published by the Centre for Society and Religion – Sri Lanka. Click here to read the full version of the magazine. Social justice magazine is a long-standing regular publication which has covered many issues relating to the improvement of the conditions of the people, particularly the conditions of the poor. The present issue is based on the theme of People Building. This issue is looked at from various angles by the number of writers. These articles will be of interest to…

Ringing church bells and lighting lamps

Church bells will ring and lights will be lit to remember the 2019 Easter Sunday tragedy. Meanwhile, people have also been putting up a fight against the deadly coronavirus. For some, both events will only have a political meaning, depending on what political loyalties they are committed to. In that way, the meanings of these extremely significant events will be gradually lost and soon they will be forgotten, or buried in the mud of opportunistic politics. However, such events have meanings that transcend mundane interests. Such threatening events have the…

The Tragic Injury to Pasindu Hirushan

Vice-Chancellor & Chairperson of the Grants Commission University of Sri Jayewardenepura Sri Lanka Dear Vice-Chancellor & Chairperson of the Grants Commission People are shocked by the following tragic incident. A first-year student of the management faculty of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, PASINDU HIRUSHAN, suffered serious injuries. He has been in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) for several days. According to reports his condition is quite serious. The details of the incident have not yet been published in detail. But it becomes clear that the incident was a result of an…

Hewa Maddumage Karunapala and others Vs Jayantha Prema Kumara Siriwardhana and others SC/FR/97/2017

The fundamental rights petition was filed by the parents of the 15-year-old victim, Hewa Maddumage Karunapala and Pallekkamkanamlage Dona Kumuduni against six persons including teacher Jayantha Premakumara Siriwardana and principal M. Leelawathi. The child petitioner was slapped across the face by Mr. Siriwardhana, teacher- in -Charge of discipline and sectional head of Puhulwella College. The action had resulted in the student a ruptured eardrum and permanently losing his hearing ability in the left ear. Considering the petition, affidavit and written submission of the petitioners and the respondent as well Supreme…

Second Anniversary of the establishment of the Office on Missing Persons

e establishment of the Office on Missing Persons (OMP) on 28th February 2018 with a broad mandate to investigate the fate of the missing and disappeared and protect the rights of their relatives, represented an explicit acknowledgement by the State of its responsibility to establish the truth and ensure justice. It was a milestone in the continuing struggle of the families of the missing and disappeared. Successive commissions of inquiry and committees, appointed by governments comprised of multiple political parties, have concluded that disappearances have been perpetrated by both State…

How can unscrupulous lawyers manipulate delays in the law?

This article is about the manner in which unscrupulous lawyers could manipulate delays in the law to their personal advantage. This type of behavior is now a permanent feature in Sri Lanka’s legal system. Analysis of the methods used for such manipulation are based on experiences from actual cases. Reflections on the behavior show that, rather than insisting on correcting wrongs litigants have experienced, unscrupulous persons work out a methodology of manipulation for personal economic advantage. In cases of serious crimes, trials which take place in the High Courts. The…

Gang Rapes, Justice and Civilization in India and Sri Lanka

An incident was reported in December 2019 from India regarding the gang rape of a woman and what happened thereafter. The news of the gang rape stirred up a massive protest from many parts of India. Among those who were involved in the protest were sections of the intelligencia of India such as Professors, doctors, professionals and the like. Also involved in the protest were the journalists. Modern social media networks would also have contributed a great deal to this protest. As a former postgraduate student from Jawaharlal Nehru University…

Hamlet without a Prince of Denmark

The 2019 election has not generated any real enthusiasm among the people. There have been the usual rituals of meetings, distribution of rice parcels, promises of other little santhosom (gifts) – those are what the sovereign people of Sri Lanka have been offered. In reality, they have been left with a beggar’s choice, which is to select something from the dustbin. Of course, no one could have expected any immediate solutions to the terrible problems the country is faced with. But the people had the right to see a slight…

What happens to the people happens also to judges, lawyers, and others

This memoir by former Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake on the (now nullified) impeachment is a significant contribution to the cause of promoting the independence of judiciary in Sri Lanka. Its significance lies in the fact it exposes the truth about what really has happened to the judiciary as an institution within the context of changes brought about by way of the constitutions of 1972 and 1978, and the practices that have developed as a result of these constitutional changes. The memoir makes it starkly clear that the separation of…

A NATION IS NOT MERELY TERRITORY OR AN IDEOLOGY BUT A COLLECTIVE CONSCIOUSNESS

Legalistically speaking, a nation is a people living together in a particular geographical region. But legal definitions do not create a nation. The meaning of nation is far deeper than any legal definition of it. Often politicians define a nation in terms of ideologies. For example, if a nation at a given time adopts the ideology of Communism, it is called a communist nation. If the ideology adopted is Capitalism it is called a capitalist nation. If the nation adopts a Fascist’s ideology it will be called a fascist nation.…