[Editor's note: Devanesan Nesiah provides a rejoinder to Tissa Devendra's vehement response to his article 'Rebuilding Sri Lanka' that was published first on Groundviews and then later in the Island.] The venomous response of Devendra in the Island of 16th March does not merit a reply but I need to set the record straight. As I said in [...]

The arrest of General Sarath Fonseka marked the beginning of an unfortunate episode in Sri Lanka’s contemporary political history (or should it be ‘political drama’). However much flawed the individual may be (just like many others engaged in domestic politics in Sri Lanka), and however much I opposed his candidature, such flaws are not reasons [...]

Five years have gone by since my entrance to the western hemisphere. Earlier inroads were always temporary; this time around it was reason to obtain citizenship. Which is done and dusted, the fat lady has sung. I am now supposedly a world citizen, no that’s not right, I don’t hold an UN passport, and sorry [...]

E-Democracy.org, with a large base in Minnesota, is helping with the Minnesota Idea Open’s first idea challenge on solutions to obesity. Those outside Minnesota should check it out as a new model for how to get people in your involved in addressing a major public challenge in a unique way. The prizes help too.

In addition to the idea challenge, join the online groups for discussions about solutions on the theme and a special online group led by Steven Clift, E-Democracy.org’s Executive Director, on “digital engagement.”

Town Hall: Can anyone be an influencer in the digital age?
(Click “Join this Group” – the two orange/red guys to register)

Is the world of digital problem solving new to you? Exchange ideas, ask questions, and connect with experienced influencers and learn about an exciting new frontier in community problem solving that uses digital technology to bring people together.

Join now and we will start with the round of Introductions on Friday and then roll into great examples of digital engagement in Minnesota, exchange some lessons with a Q and A period and close with your big ideas for what’s next for Minnesota with digital engagement.

I’ve moved to Jaffna on work. Everyone I know seems to think I’ve done something great and inspiring, to have moved here to help people. Firstly, I don’t think I’m better than anyone else for having moved here. I felt that being closer in “proximity” to issues that matter to me, would on some level [...]

The question of Muslim identity, displacement and forcible evictions during war and their enduring socio-political impact in post-war Sri Lanka is often underplayed in the media and mainstream politics. Muslim IDPs in the East are amongst those who have been in IDP camps the longest, often in conditions no better than Tamils interned in Manik [...]

Here we go again, or should I say here they come again, or is it here they go again? In an opening scene in the movie 300, based on Frank Miller’s freely rendered comic book version of the battle of Thermopylae in Herodotus’ Histories, Spartan king Leonidas boots an arrogant  emissary of Persian king Xerxes into [...]

Shanthi Sachithananthan, the Chairperson of Viluthu has been featured on Groundviews during the war. This interview, conducted late 2009 after war’s end, considers significant developments over the course of the year including the demise of the LTTE. Shanthi talks about the need to change the timbre of political interactions between the South and the tamil peoples. [...]

GROSS PLAGIARISM BY NIBRAS BAWA, AUTHOR OF THIS POST A sharp reader alerted Groundviews that this article contains plagiarised content. Upon further inspection, we discovered that entire portions of the article have been copied verbatim from other web sources. This is a clear violation of site guidelines, and we sincerely apologise to the original content owners [...]

How can we strengthen democracy in Sri Lanka? From blue sky thinking to tried and tested ideas at the grassroots that need to scale up or be better recognised and supported, Groundviews invites you to create a unique catalogue of ideas on how post-war Sri Lanka can strengthen democratic governance. Groundviews, as well as other online fora and [...]