Voice of Tigers: The Rebel Radio That Echoed Through Sri Lanka’s War

Voice of Tigers: The Rebel Radio That Echoed Through Sri Lanka’s War

By: M.R. Narayan Swamy Bettering the proverbial cat, the Tamil Tigers radio had two dozen lives! From its rudimentary beginnings in Jaffna, the Voice of Tigers (VOT), or Puligalin Kural, grew into a powerful radio station that broadcast news and other programmes in Tamil from the dense forests of Sri Lanka. The station chronicled the war fought by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), albeit with an inherent bias favouring the Tamil guerrillas, till May 2009 when the Sri Lankan m


M.R. Narayan Swamy

M.R. Narayan Swamy

“Sri Lanka Now Has No Foreign Policy,” Former Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris Says

“Sri Lanka Now Has No Foreign Policy,” Former Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris Says

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka- Former Foreign Minister G. L. Peiris delivered a blistering indictment of the Sri Lankan government Wednesday, accusing it of abandoning the nation's economic interests and diplomatic standing in the wake of the torpedoing of the Iranian warship IRIS Dena, declaring that the country now "has no foreign policy whatsoever." Speaking at a joint opposition media briefing on Wednesday, Mr. Peiris described the sinking of the IRIS Dena as an unprecedented event since World War II,


Our Reporter

Our Reporter

The Meccan Shawl

The Meccan Shawl

Translated from the original Tamil short story makkattuc cālvai (மக்கத்துச் சால்வை) from the eponymous 1992 collection of short stories by S.L.M. Hanifa. The original collection is available at noolaham.org. If you have any questions, please contact ez.iniyavan@gmail.com. “Thambi! Mammanifā, do you remember me, son? That day, your wāppā and everyone else remained mum. You were a little boy. But you spotted it like a vigilant crow. You shouted as if you were raise the alarm.” “He is hit, he i


Eḻuttukkiṉiyavaṉ

Eḻuttukkiṉiyavaṉ

The Palestine issue and International Quds Day

The Palestine issue and International Quds Day

Quds Day: From an Idea to an International Demand The last Friday of the holy month of Ramadan was designated as Quds Day several decades ago by the Founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This designation, more than being a mere political statement, was a call for the international community to pay attention to an issue that was gradually being forgotten: the displacement of a nation and the occupation of a land considered holy by the followers of three major divine religions. Today, Quds Da


Dr. Alireza Delkhosh

Dr. Alireza Delkhosh

Unafraid and Unbowed

Archbishop, Archbishop, why hast thou forsaken us in our hour of sorrow and slaughter?

Archbishop, Archbishop, why hast thou forsaken us in our hour of sorrow and slaughter?

"Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins." - Isaiah 58:1 His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, Archbishop of Colombo and chief shepherd of the Catholic flock in all of Sri Lanka, has recently marked fifty years in the sacred priesthood. As the highest-ranking prelate whose dominion spans the entire island, he now stands as a mighty voice crying for justice, calling upon the nations of the earth for interv


Kaniyan Pungundran

Kaniyan Pungundran

Jaffna Library Burning: The Day They Burned the buddha and his dhamma

Jaffna Library Burning: The Day They Burned the buddha and his dhamma

Why South Asia Reveres Books-and Fears Their Destruction Irrespective of religion, across the Indian subcontinent, books have long held an exalted status. In the indigenous spiritual traditions that emerged from this land-Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism-knowledge is not merely valued; it is venerated in the highest order. In homes, temples, and schools across the region, people treat books with profound reverence-never touching them with their feet, and if done accidentally, offering a


Kaniyan Pungundran

Kaniyan Pungundran

Chemmani: Where Justice Was Buried

Chemmani: Where Justice Was Buried

The dead do not speak - but the earth does A few years ago, I visited Cambodia. My original aim was to see the Angkor Wat temple complex. But, as always, my journalistic instincts led me deeper into rural Cambodia, where I found myself in quiet conversations with a few former soldiers of the Pol Pot regime, now living ordinary lives as toddy tappers, farmers, and small shop owners. One of them - a former henchman of the Khmer Rouge - opened up after a few glasses of toddy. In a hauntingly calm


Kaniyan Pungundran

Kaniyan Pungundran

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Dutch Ambassador Says Russia Tried to Censor Ukraine War Photos in Sri Lanka

Dutch Ambassador Says Russia Tried to Censor Ukraine War Photos in Sri Lanka

COLOMBO — March 11, 2026 The Netherlands’ ambassador to Sri Lanka, Wiebe de Boer, has accused Russia of attempting to restrict what Sri Lankan audiences can see after the Russian Embassy demanded that photographs depicting Moscow’s war in Ukraine be removed from a traveling international photojournalism exhibition currently on display in the country. In an exclusive interview with Jaffna Monitor, Ambassador de Boer said the objections raised by the Russian Embassy reflected an effort to impose


Our Special Correspondent

Our Special Correspondent

A Strategic Framework for Sea Transport and Tourism in the Northern Provin

A Strategic Framework for Sea Transport and Tourism in the Northern Provin

By: Jeevan Thiagarajah The High Price of Neglect For the residents of Sri Lanka’s Northern Province, the Palk Strait and the Jaffna Lagoon are not merely bodies of water; they are lifelines. The islands of Delft, Kayts, Karainagar, Pungudutivu, and Nainathivu are tethered to the Jaffna mainland by a fragile network of ferries. Every day, students, patients, and traders entrust their lives to these vessels. Yet, despite the existence of comprehensive maritime laws, the reality of compliance in


Jeevan Thiyagaraja

Jeevan Thiyagaraja

Sri Lanka Fuel Price Hike Defended by CPC Chief, but Data Raises Questions

Sri Lanka Fuel Price Hike Defended by CPC Chief, but Data Raises Questions

COLOMBO, March 10, 2026 The chairman of Sri Lanka’s state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), D.A. Rajakaruna, appeared before the media on March 10 to defend a sharp retail fuel price increase that took effect the same day. The explanation he offered centred on two claims: that global oil prices had risen “nearly 100 percent between the 1st and the 27th” of February into early March, and that a domestic panic-buying surge had drained reserves far sooner than anticipated. Both claims conta


Jaffna Monitor Economic Desk

Jaffna Monitor Economic Desk

Russia and Netherlands Clash in Sri Lanka Over War Photos at World Press Photo Exhibition

Russia and Netherlands Clash in Sri Lanka Over War Photos at World Press Photo Exhibition

COLOMBO — March 11, 2026 The Russian Embassy in Sri Lanka has demanded the removal of photographs depicting Russia’s war in Ukraine from the 2025 World Press Photo exhibition, currently on display in Colombo and scheduled to move to Kandy. The Dutch Embassy, a co-organizer of the event, has rejected the request, calling it an infringement on freedom of expression. The exhibition, organized by the World Press Photo Foundation, the Sri Lanka Press Institute, and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the


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