In mankind’s eagerness to ‘progress’ and ‘develop’ sight has been lost of the finite and delicate nature of planet Earth and of humanity’s place in it. As a consequence the global climate has become unbalanced, leading to an increasing risk of floods, droughts and severe storms the world over. In its 4th Assessment Report, the Inter-governmental Panel [...]
Girls in headscarves is not exactly what you would expect to see walking through the doors of a Catholic school in London. Yet for young people living in London today interfaith encounters are not as rare as they used to be. While opportunities to meet people from other cultures are increasingly common, meaningful learning doesn’t [...]
Last summer, I was honored to be invited to an Iftar dinner — the meal to break the daily fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan — hosted by Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano. The guests consisted of many high ranking government officials, including a large number of Muslim government employees. These Muslim [...]
This last month sees the official marking of three years after the end of the 28 year old war that plagued Sri Lanka, killing thousands and setting the country back in terms of development and prosperity. Yet three years on, it seems that not much has changed. Whilst Sri Lanka has tried to portray [...]
I am a self-confessed history geek who loves nothing better than to get into a story from the past — especially one that is as relevant to today’s policy discussions and societal concerns as it was when it first occurred. Few stories, however, have managed to tick all the boxes for me as well as [...]
It is not very often that one feels that they are a witness to a living moment of history. Last night was one of the rare privileges that I was accorded to see history in the making. I had the honour of attending the inaugural awards dinner for the Muslim Women’s Sports Federation (MWSF) held [...]
April has been an educative month, so far. In the first week of April, white-vanning reached new levels of omnipotence and omnipresence. The sudden disappearance and the equally unlooked for reappearance of Premakumar Gunaratnam and Dimuthu Attygala has compelled even the generally soporific opposition to bestir itself, and ask for a parliamentary debate on abductions. [...]
Last week, during a book tour in London, I spoke to a large group of British Muslims on Islam and liberty. A few of the questions that I received from the audience indicated why discussion on this topic is much needed. “If the state gives the people the freedom to do what they want, then [...]
