Jaffna Monitor - Unafraid and Unbowed

Sri Lanka’s Top Judges Weigh an Amendment That Could Extend Their Own Tenure

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka was to begin hearing challenges on Tuesday to a constitutional amendment that would extend the working lives of the judges deciding the case. Before any argument on the amendment itself, the court faced a preliminary question about its own composition: whether five judges are enough. Chief Justice Preethi Padman Surasena announced the five-member bench on Monday and will preside over it. Sitting with him are Justices Achala Wengappuli, Arjuna

Our Reporter

Sep 1, 2026 — 2 min read

Court Stops Archaeology Department Work at Kanniya

JM Exclusive August 2026

Our Reporter

Aug 31, 2026 — 3 min read

NPP Councillor Resigns a Day After Arrest Over Jaffna Home Attack

August 2026

Our Reporter

Aug 31, 2026 — 2 min read

Families of Sri Lanka’s Disappeared March in Jaffna, Still Asking: Where Are They?

JM Exclusive August 2026

Aruliniyan Mahalingam

Aug 30, 2026 — 6 min read

Sri Lanka Supreme Court Rejects Full-Bench Request in Challenge to Judges’ Retirement-Age Amendment

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected a request for all of its judges to hear challenges to a proposed constitutional amendment that would extend the retirement ages of judges, deciding that the proceedings would continue before a five-member bench headed by the chief justice. The ruling disposed of an unusual preliminary dispute in a closely watched constitutional case: who should sit in judgment on legislation that, if enacted, could extend the tenure of members o

JM COURTS August 2026

Our Reporter

Sep 1, 2026 — 3 min read

Hinduism's Temples of Sri Lanka and India: One Living Tradition, Built to Reach Everyone

By Jeevan Thiagarajah A temple is never really finished. It is destroyed, it is rebuilt, and somewhere in that cycle it becomes sacred all over again — not despite the disruption, but partly because of it. That is the argument at the heart of a new book, Sacred Shrines of Sri Lanka: A Profile of Major Hindu Temples. It is also the argument behind the ecosystem now being built around it — a Kindle edition, a website, a Facebook page, and Kovil, a mobile app — so that the same material can reach

Guest Column August 2026

Jeevan Thiyagaraja

Sep 1, 2026 — 9 min read

Mother of Two Electrocuted at Jaffna Government Office After Being Called to Work on Sunday

JAFFNA, Sri Lanka — A 37-year-old government employee and mother of two was electrocuted Sunday evening at the Uduvil Divisional Secretariat after staff members were instructed to report to the office on what would ordinarily have been a day off to prepare for a government productivity assessment scheduled for Monday. The death of Nishanthan Sinthupiriya, a development officer attached to the Indigenous Medicine sector, has prompted questions about why employees were called in on a Sunday, who

August 2026

Our Reporter

Aug 30, 2026 — 2 min read

NPP ‘Thug’ Councillor Arrested at 12:45, Freed at 7

JAFFNA, Sri Lanka — A local councillor from Sri Lanka’s governing National People’s Power was arrested early Sunday after allegedly entering the home of a retired government official in Nelliady with a group of associates while intoxicated, damaging property and threatening those inside. Roughly six hours later, he was released on police bail, prompting allegations that political pressure helped secure his release. Santhirakumar Kanesaruban, an NPP member of the Vadamaradchi South West Pradeshi

August 2026

Our Reporter

Aug 30, 2026 — 4 min read

UNAFRAID AND UNBOWED

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

Editorial July 2025

Kaniyan Pungundran

Jul 14, 2025 — 12 min read

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

Cover Story June 2025

Aruliniyan Mahalingam

Jun 16, 2025 — 14 min read

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

Editorial June 2025

Kaniyan Pungundran

Jun 16, 2025 — 7 min read

Explore our archive of articles, interviews, and creative projects

‘They Deserve Answers’: U.N. Envoy Presses Sri Lanka on the Disappeared

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — The United Nations’ top official in Sri Lanka called on the government on Sunday to strengthen investigations into enforced disappearances, conduct independent forensic examinations of mass graves, and ensure that families searching for missing relatives can participate meaningfully in the process. Marc-André Franche, the United Nations resident coordinator in Sri Lanka, made the appeal in a video statement marking the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappeara

August 2026

Our Reporter

Aug 30, 2026 — 3 min read

Sri Lanka’s Disappeared: Where Do We Go From Here?

By: Sunanda Deshapriya 30 August is the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances. Across the world, tens of thousands of families continue to search for answers about loved ones who vanished during wars, dictatorships, political repression, and armed conflicts. For many, justice remains elusive. Sri Lanka is one of the countries where enforced disappearances remain a deeply painful and unresolved issue. For decades, Sinhalese, Tamil, and Muslim families have experienced disa

Guest Column August 2026

Sunanda Deshapriya

Aug 30, 2026 — 5 min read

Iranian Tankers Gather Near Sri Lanka, Where U.S. Sank an Iranian Warship in March

COLOMBO — Nearly 20 Iranian oil tankers, all of them empty, have gathered in waters near Sri Lanka, unable to sail home because an American naval blockade has closed Iran's ports. Their presence has brought the war between Washington and Tehran close to Sri Lanka and to one of the world's busiest shipping lanes for the second time this year. Sri Lanka's Foreign Ministry said on Saturday that it was tracking the vessels but bore no responsibility for them and was providing them nothing. Thushara

JM Exclusive August 2026

Our Reporter

Aug 29, 2026 — 3 min read

ITAK Will Skip Disappearance Commemorations, Citing Exclusion

JAFFNA, Sri Lanka — The Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi (ITAK), the largest political party representing Sri Lankan Tamils, said it will stay away from Sunday’s commemorations for the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, arguing that competing events had been organized without consulting or inviting the party — even as families of the missing prepare for a large march and international conference in Jaffna. The decision lays bare divisions over how one of the most enduring gr

August 2026

Our Reporter

Aug 29, 2026 — 3 min read