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Issues of academic freedom and forced ‘voluntary’ retirement of Prof. Sasanka Perera: A call for reflection and dialogue

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Prof. K.K. Aggarwal President

South Asian University New Delhi

Mr Ranil Wickremasinghe President of Sri Lanka President’s Office Colombo

Mr. Sagala Ratnayaka

Chief of Staff to the President of Sri Lanka President’s Office

Colombo

Mr. Saman Ekanayake

Secretary/President of Sri Lanka President’s Office

Colombo

Mr. Ali Sabry

Minister of Foreign Affairs Government of Sri LankaMr. Tharaka Balasuriya

State Minister of Foreign Affairs Government of Sri Lanka Ms. Kshenuka Senewiratne

High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to India

Ms. Aruni Wijewardane,

Secretary/Foreign Affairs Ministry of Foreign Affairs Government of Sri Lanka

Mr Niluka Kandurugamuwa

Director General SAARC Ministry of Foreign Affairs Government of Sri Lanka

Dr. S. Jaishankar

External Affairs Minister Government of India

Mr. Vikram Misri

Foreign Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs Government of India

Mr. Jaideep Mazumdar

Secretary [East] Ministry of External Affairs Government of India

Mr. CSR Ram

Joint Secretary [BIMSTEC & SAARC] Ministry of External Affairs Government of India

Mr. Puneet Agrawal

Additional Secretary/ Indian Ocean Region Ministry of External Affairs

Government of India Mr. Santosh Jha High Commissioner

High Commission of India Colombo

Mr Md. Golam Sarwar

Secretary General/SAARC SAARC Secretariat Kathmandu

Ms Irosha Cooray

Director/ Education, Security and Culture SAARC Secretariat

Kathmandu

We, the alumni of the South Asian University (SAU), are extremely appalled by the recent treatment meted out to Prof. Sasanka Perera by the University. Prof. Perera is one of the founding faculty members of this institution and has been crucial to not just the evolution of the Department of Sociology but also to the blossoming of the university in varied roles as professor, Head of the Department of Sociology, Dean of Social Sciences and Vice President of this ‘international’ University over thirteen years of dedicated efforts.

The systemic institutional harassment that Professor Perera was made to undergo since April this year initially launched by the Dean of Social Sciences Sanjay Chaturvedi and the Head of Sociology Dev Nath Pathak, is however not surprising given the recent ongoing chain of events regarding the suspension of four core faculty members and the witch-hunt of students who dared to speak out for their basic rights as an intrinsic part of life and learning in what is supposed to be an international university. In these last few years, it is, perhaps, a matter of routine to institutionally hound and effectively extinguish any notion of free speech and liberty in this institution of higher learning. The notoriety that SAU has brought upon itself globally in the last few years is hard to retreat from.

For alumni of SAU working in leading universities in and outside South Asia and the larger international academic world, the punitive and arbitrary measures by the administration against its faculty and students for merely speaking out for their minimum rights — and in this case for solely supervising the writing of a PhD research proposal — is indeed shocking and unfathomable! No matter what the University may claim to wash its hands off the egregious situation it has created, it is evident that Prof. Perera was left with no option but to voluntarily retire in the horrific circumstances to preserve his dignity and integrity, characteristics appallingly lacking at the university and in its leadership. But with the wrongful ouster of a founding faculty and, not to mention, an internationally acclaimed scholar in the field of Social Sciences, the University has effectively plunged to new depths of academic degeneration and international embarrassment.

This recent issue of sending a show-cause notice to a PhD candidate and setting up an inquiry committee to investigate his supervisor merely for citing a world-renowned intellectual on a research topic that is solely within the bounds of academic history and present practices of research across the world are tragically farcical operations. The dissertation proposal, which cites linguist Noam Chomsky’s view, argues that Narendra Modi represents

a ‘radical Hindutva tradition’—a perspective that aligns with the views of many progressive thinkers. Chomsky himself has critiqued the Modi administration of undermining Indian secular democracy and promoting a discriminatory ideology. Adding to the complexity, the student in question is a Muslim from Kashmir. The situation, where a student is being questioned for citing a scholar and a professor is forced into retirement for supervising the student, ironically seems to validate Chomsky’s critique by indeed demonstrating a grave threat to Indian secular democracy and a violation of academic freedom.

Adding to the irony, Professor Sasanka Perera is one of the few international faculty members at South Asian University that touts itself as an ‘international’ university, and the treatment meted out to him underscores the rapid erosion of the institution’s global and cosmopolitan character and its reinvention as a North Indian institution of ill-repute. While universities have historically emerged within the dominant socio-political and economic frameworks of their times, the more established and reputed ones have progressively transformed into bastions of democratic values and critical inquiry. Today, they are expected to champion the principles of academic freedom and foster environments where diverse perspectives are engaged with and respected. Sadly, rather than serving as a beacon of critical thinking in the current socio-political climate, South Asian University has become a mere apparatus of the Indian State. Its South Asian sensibility and ownership by the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), which established it, is irrevocably lost. This is a new low in the history of this University’s enterprise of harassment of its faculty. The future of authentic, serious and unbiased research in SAU is at stake if the minimum good practices of research and academic writing cannot be upheld within a university that claims global repute.

What is worse is that the institutional harassment of Prof Perera did not come from external sources. As clearly authenticated by documents of the inquiry process, it came from the Head of Sociology and the Dean of Social Sciences augmented by the deafening silence of the faculty members of the Department of Sociology, other Social Science fields in the university and more generally, across the university. It must also be asked why the two other faculty members who were part of the PhD candidate’s Research Committee and the Academic Committee of the Department of Sociology, which cleared the proposal, were not subject to the inquiry and only Prof. Perera was singled out. Is it because he is non-Indian? All this begs the question: what has happened to the social sciences at SAU and what has become of their practitioners’ sense of ‘doing social science’ and the ethics this involves? With this kind of silence and choreographed timidity in the face of injustice displayed by the great majority of faculty members in the university, one cannot envisage SAU ascending to the heights its pioneers, including Prof Perera, initially envisaged and worked towards.

The exit of Professor Perera is not just a colossal loss for the present students of Sociology at SAU, but also marks the end of honing young and budding minds in the future. Apart from his extensive scholarship, he was a cherished teacher in the classroom who encouraged

critical, reflective and analytical thinking — a highly valuable skill set for knowledge production in social sciences. Professor Perera has been a North Star for many students who have gone on to pursue PhD and research in some of the top international universities. Many of us could pursue a doctoral programme in the top 100 Universities of the world due to his motivation and guidance. His timely and always unstinted and unwavering support for students in their time of need (many times even financial needs) attests to his magnanimity and altruism, a rare quality at SAU.

This entire episode also opens up a series of other crucial questions. That is, what have the SAARC Secretariat, the Secretary-General of SAARC, the SAU Governing Board and the Government of Sri Lanka done to ensure academic freedom and impartiality at the university while safeguarding the interests of a Lankan citizen who does not have access to courts of law in India? Moreover, what has the Indian Government done in this situation which championed the appointment of the present President under whose watch the current episode unfurled, hiding behind the protection the Indian government has gifted to SAU in the form of rights of immunity which has so far allowed SAU to engage in these kinds of unprofessional and unethical activities relentlessly.

All this is to say that the prolonged institutional harassment faced by Professor Perera that led to his early and unplanned retirement is a deep blemish on the academic integrity, ethics and authenticity of knowledge production in a university that claims to be of international standing. Hegemonic geopolitics and extreme pettiness in positions of leadership and power in the university must stop negatively influencing academic practices if SAU genuinely aspires to reach the potential that was envisioned in its creation. As of now, SAU is nose diving into the void of intellectual censorship and academic captivity, effectively taking a toll on its fee-paying students and their futures.

Concerned Alumni of South Asian University

Anushka Kahandagamage

2017-2020 Sri Lankan Sociology (Mphil/PhD) Doctoral Candidate, School of Social Sciences, University of Otago.

Magna Mohapatra

2020, 2022 India Sociology (MA), Sociology (MPhil) Doctoral student, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Sakuna M Gamage

2019 Sri Lankan International Relations (MA) Independent Reseacher & Journalist

Zunayed Ahmed Ehsan 2020 Bangladesh Sociology (MA) Doctoral Student, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Sukanya Maity

2023 India Sociology (MA)

Vishal Singh Raghuvanshi

2017 India Sociology (MA) Working at TR Abir Mazumder 2015 India Sociology, PhD Visiting Faculty, NLSIU, Bangalore

Kaushalya Kumarasinghe

2016 Sri Lanka Sociology, PhD Visiting Academic, Faculty of Graduate Studies, University of Colombo

Buddha Prakash Dhamma Piya Asoka

2021 India Sociology, MA Doctoral Student, Department of Anthropology, CUNY Graduate Center

Kathirtharsini Parameswaran

2023 Sri Lanka LLM

Mst Sabina Tabasum

2023 Bangladesh Sociology, MA Research Associate, Dnet- Development Research Network

Keshav Sawarn

2023 India Sociology, MA Junior Research Fellow, Indian Statistical Institute

Prabudh Singh

2017 India Sociology, MA

Yasangi Handunge

2024 Sri Lanka LLM

Aishwarya Ahmed

2022 Bangladesh Sociology, MA Doctoral Student, Oklahoma State University

Sivaselwam Arulnesan

2022 Sri Lanka MA in International relations Doctoral Student, Christ University, India

Keerthika Suntharalingam

2023 Sri Lanka MA in Sociology Visiting Lecturer, The Open University of Sri Lanka.

Aditya Kumar Pandey

2024 India MA in Sociology Doctoral Student, Shiv Nadar University

Rajashree Chowdhury

2018 India MA in Sociology Doctoral Student, Department of Sociology, Delhi School of Economics

Sridhar Krishnan

2018, 2024 India MA & PhD. International Relations Writing Tutor, Centre for Writing and Communication, Ashoka University.

Pranav Menon

2019 India LLM Doctoral Student, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities

Amrita Sachdev

2016 India Sociology, MA Screenwriter, Mumbai

Kalyan Kumar K

2016 India Sociology, MA Research Fellow, Westminster Business School, London

Jyothika Rimal

2016 India Sociology, MA Ngo, Nepal

Bhimraj M

2019 India LLM MPhil (Law) Student, University of Oxford

Rachna

2022 India LLM Litigation

Swapnil Tiwari

2019 India LLM Assistant Registrar, Customs Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal

Vijayan M

2018 India LLM Asst.Professor Govt.Law College Calicut, Kerala

Nishit Sharma

2022 India Sociology, MA Doctoral Student at University of Nevada Las Vegas

Nazi Karim

2018 Afghanistan MA(Sociology) Phd student at Victoria University of Wellington

Shyamjith

2022 India MA in Sociology Project Fellow, National Institute of Rural Development

Violina Barman

2020 India Sociology, MA Research Associate, CSDD India

Namrata Sedhain

2018 Nepal LLM Officer, Supreme Court of Nepal

Md. Sharifur Rahman

2020 Bangladesh LLM Senior Officer, Zubion Development Solutions Limited

Shashi Kumar

2020 India IR

Haaris Moosa

2020 India LLM Advocate, Kochi

Anukuvi Thavarasa

2020 Sri Lanka Sociology, MA Researcher at the Central European University, Vienna

Tuisha Sircar

2019 India MA Sociology Doctoral Student, IIT Bombay, ADCPS

Chamika Wijesuriya

2020 Sri Lanka MA International Relations Independent Researcher

Bonna chakraborti

2024 Bangladesh Sociology Ma

Ahana Chakrabarti

2018 India MA Sociology Doctoral Student, CSSSC

Sheikh Raisul Islam

2018 Bangladesh LLM Lead Specialist, Trade, BIMSTEC Secretariat

Md. Raihan

2020 Bangladesh LLM Project Officer-Legal, INGO

Mohammad Dawood

2019 Afghanistan MA International Relations Director Research Alternative Spectrum, USA

Anusha Bhansali

2020 India MA International Relations

Deyasinee Bhattacharyya

2020 India MA Sociology

Syed Eesar Mahedi

2022 India PhD IR

Irshad Arshad

2021 Pakistan MSc Biorechnology

Amol Shaila Suresh

2023 India MA Economics Research Associate, University of Maryland

A.S.M Riad Arif

2018 Bangladesh MA Sociology icddr,b

Pooja Kumari

2022 India LL. M. Research Fellow, IIT Kharagpur

Abu Raihan Sarkar

2022 India MA Sociology

Kanika Rai Dhanda

2015 India MA Sociology Doctoral student, Northwestern University

Neranjan Maddumage

2019 Sri Lanka MA Sociology Consultant Researcher, INFORM Human Rights Documentation Centre

Rohan Basu

2020 India MA Sociology Doctoral Scholar, Dept of Historical Studies, Central European University, Vienna

Manvika Shivhare

2022 India LL.M. Project Lead, ActionAid

Lopamudra Gogoi

2022 India MA Sociology Assistant Accounts Officer, Assam Finance Service.

S. Vasudev

2024 India M.A. Sociology Doctoral Student, Department of Sociology Shiv Nadar University

Fawaz Basheer

2021 India M.A. Sociology

Mortaza Mandegar

Hassani 2019 Afghanistan M. A. Sociology Doctoral Student, History, UCLA

Venkata Narayana

2016, 2021 India MA Sociology, MPhil Sociology Coordinator, Department of Sociology, Loyola College, Chennai.

Abdullah Al Mozahid

2023 Bangladesh MA Sociology Lecturer, Premier University, Chittagong

Riya Choudhary

2024 India M.A Sociology

Madhubanti Talukdar

2019

India M.A. Sociology Consultant Researcher, Climate Loss and Damage project funded by IWMI

Shray Mehta

2018 India MPhil Sociology PhD, NUS Sociology

Mostafa Shabuj

2016 Bangladesh M.A Sociology Journalist, The Daily Star



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Opinion

Is Sri Lanka on the wrong side of history?

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To say that the developing new world order is history in the making may not be an exaggeration, because the economic, military and hegemonic landscape of the world may be undergoing radical realignment in these troubled times.  Multipolarity and the emergence of the Global South’s economic and political clout may be the defining features of the new world order. There may be several evidential happenings around the world that give credence to the above observation. For instance, at the 61st Munich Security Conference, held in 2025, multipolarity was accepted as a historical inevitability and a reality. The Munich Security Report 2025, themed “Multi-polarization,” explicitly states that the world already lives in a multipolar order. The Munich Security Council, traditionally dominated by Europe and the US, saw 30 percent of its speakers, this time, representing the Global South, a testament to the world’s multipolar trajectory

The Munich Security Report 2025 highlights that BRICS nations contribute to approximately 40 percent of global trade, as well as crude oil production and exports. Further, according to the International Monetary Fund, the GDP of emerging markets and developing economies accounted for 58.9 percent of the global economy in 2023.

Countries in the Global South are asserting greater independence in global affairs. They have actively promoted greater democracy in international relations through platforms such as BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, injecting vital momentum into the world multi polarisation process.

Another clear indicator of this reality is the way the US failed to impose its will in the affairs of the Middle East. Significantly, it could not achieve its objectives in the war against Iran and, furthermore, its European allies refused to join, saying that it was not their war. The fact that the war, which the US and Israel expected to be a quick “strike and take over,” has ended up in a stalemate, with Iran holding all the cards, according to Prof Jeffrey Sachs, points to the changing balance of power in the world. Obviously, Iran was able to enhance its military capability due to the significant development of the multiple military power blocs.

In this regard it is interesting to see that most of the countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America, which have suffered due to western hegemony and economic exploitation, tariffs and sanctions and dollar weaponisation, are beginning to make moves towards realigning their relationship with world powers. Several African nations, Egypt, Ethiopia, Algeria, Kenya, Tanzania, are actively realigning toward the Global South, shifting away from Western-aligned partnerships to pursue multipolarity, resource sovereignty, and new economic ties with powers like China, Russia, and India.

In Asia, too, the trend is apparent; Malaysia has adopted an explicit Global South policy, focusing on outreach to the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America, as well as deepening ASEAN institutional ties. Indonesia focuses on inclusive multilateralism and critical balancing in global governance, ensuring the developing world’s economic needs are prioritised. Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates joined BRICS in 2023, reflecting a strategic shift to diversify their diplomatic and economic alliances away from purely Western orbits. There are several other countries that are emerging as economically independent and diplomatically articulative states, like Nigeria, Turkiye, and Mexico.

What is the position of Sri Lanka in this rapidly changing world order? Are we going to be left behind? Why aren’t there any signs that Sri Lanka is projecting itself as a willing partner of this journey in the South?  Why isn’t it attempting to break away from the neo-liberal grip that keeps it in poverty and turn to the South? Are there any tangible economic, political or geopolitically strategic projections, reaching out to the Global South, that Sri Lanka has launched, at present, like so many other countries are doing? Even when opportunities knock on its door, Sri Lanka doesn’t seem to be interested. A case in point is the BRICS meeting in 2024, held in Russia. Though Sri Lanka was invited, none of its state leaders attended the meeting, resulting in the loss of an opportunity to establish vital economic, political and cultural links and bonds with Global South countries.

What is restraining Sri Lanka? Is it its present economic vulnerabilities and dependence on the West? It is the Global North that controls the Sri Lankan economy at present. We are tied to the IMF and controlled by their conditions and the IMF is under the thumb of the West. Further 60 percent of our exports go to the Global North. It seems likely that our export oriented, debt-burdened economy cannot afford to turn towards the Global South because of our utter dependence on the West. We saw that there was no hesitation to slap tariffs on us though we show the least tendency to disobey. One could imagine what could happen if we turn southwards, even a little bit. This is the reason why Sri Lanka would dare not change direction the slightest.

Countries that turn southwards do so to escape from the hegemony, exploitation and coercive power of the West. Isn’t there a way out for Sri Lanka to get out of this vicious global economic system and become economically independent? We were bankrupt in 2022 and people rose up against the system and wanted a change. The present government rode that tide and came to power promising a change. But there was no change and not even an attempt to change. What needed a change was the economy in the main, which would be meaningless unless a break from the fetters of neo-liberalism was the aim. What did not change was exactly that, though there were attempts to change other less vital areas, such as going after the corrupt in the Opposition.

It must be said that the government had an excellent opportunity to correct decades long mistakes. The people were asking for a change which means they were prepared to participate and support the government if it wanted to go for that change. An attempt should have been made to gradually change the export-import-debt based economy and lessen the  dependence on the Global North and its economic system. A turn towards the Global South would have facilitated the desired change. The government was left-oriented, or so they said. But it appeared to be helpless to break away from the neo-liberal shackles, leave alone negotiating a better deal with the IMF.

True, we are not strong enough to go for such radical change but we could have made ourselves strong by achieving self-sufficiency, the only way to become economically independent. Such a move, no doubt, would initially result in hardship for the people, but eventually the country would come out of its poverty. Now they are condemned to eternal privation.

The government’s plan, if it wanted to go for the change, they promised, should have been to first launch a comprehensive programme to achieve self-sufficiency in our essential needs like food, cloth, medicine and green energy. The other critical move that Sri Lanka should have made was to join the Global South in its march towards a new world order. Such a strategy would have helped us to achieve a stronger and independent economy.

An important outcome of adopting such a policy would be that our economy would not be vulnerable to external shocks such as tariffs, drop in tourism, turmoil in the Middle East that disrupts fuel supply and migrant-remittances, and external trade vagaries. Further, when we are not dependent on our essentials, nobody would be able to dictate to us or interfere in our internal affairs.

 Another important factor in Sri Lanka’s favour is its strategic position in the Indian Ocean and the fact that due to this everybody needs it. India would like to have a firm grip on it, so does the US. China has invested heavily in it due to this reason.  However, Sri Lanka, at present, is not strong enough  to leverage this geographical strategic situation to its advantage because of its highly dependent and vulnerable status. As a consequence of this strategic situation could be exploited by powerful countries as is now happening.

What Sri Lanka could do in this regard is to develop its airports and harbours as a transit trade hub by leveraging its strategic geographical position in the Indian Ocean to serve as a central stopping point where cargo, vehicles, and raw materials are consolidated, temporarily stored, or re-exported, primarily connecting East Asia, the Middle East, Africa and the Indian subcontinent. This would facilitate trade among the Global South countries and enhance Sri Lanka’s role and image in the new world order. At present Sri Lanka’s true potential in this business has not been realised due to its vulnerabilities, but if it chooses to take the path outlined above it could succeed. For this to happen Global South assistance is vital. There is no choice for Sri Lanka but to grab this moment of history and join the journey towards the new world order before we are left behind.

by N. A. de S. Amaratunga

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Opinion

Why SL must embrace EVIL DONE Framework for 21st Century terrorism Prevention

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Adapting Opportunity-Reduction Strategies:

In the annals of Sri Lanka’s turbulent security history, from the brutal LTTE insurgency that claimed tens of thousands of lives to the devastating 2019 Easter Sunday attacks, one pattern persists with frustrating regularity: successive governments wield draconian tools like the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), ICCPR provisions, and Emergency Regulations with zeal while in power, only to decry them as authoritarian when in opposition. This selective amnesia reflects not strategic depth but political expediency. Amid evolving hybrid threats from lingering Tamil diaspora networks and ethnic hate speech to drug trafficking and cyber vulnerabilities, Sri Lanka urgently needs principled, proactive tools that transcend partisan cycles.

The EVIL DONE framework, developed by criminologists Ronald V. Clarke and Graeme R. Newman in their seminal 2006 work Outsmarting the Terrorists, offers precisely such an instrument. Rooted in Situational Crime Prevention (SCP) and Rational Choice Theory (RCT), it shifts the focus from reactive force to intelligent opportunity reduction. Adapting it could fortify our national resilience while upholding human rights and interfaith harmony.

At its core, EVIL DONE is a pragmatic diagnostic tool for assessing why terrorists select specific targets. It posits that attackers, like other rational actors, weigh costs, benefits, risks, and rewards. The acronym evaluates target attractiveness across eight criteria, typically scored from 0 to 5 (higher scores signalling greater vulnerability): Exposed (highly visible or accessible sites), Vital (critical infrastructure like power plants or ports), Iconic (symbolically potent locations such as religious shrines or monuments), Legitimate (targets framed as ideologically justified), Destructible (easily damaged with available means), Occupied (crowded venues maximising casualties and media impact), Near (proximate to attacker networks), and Easy (lacking robust guardianship or surveillance).

This framework draws directly from the broader principles of Situational Crime Prevention (SCP), pioneered by Ronald V. Clarke, which manipulates immediate environmental factors to make crimes harder to commit, riskier, less rewarding, less provocative, or less excusable. SCP organises 25 practical techniques into five categories: increasing effort (e.g., target hardening and access controls), increasing risks (e.g., enhanced surveillance and guardianship), reducing rewards (e.g., concealing targets and denying benefits), reducing provocations (e.g., managing frustrations and neutralising peer pressure), and removing excuses (e.g., setting clear rules and alerting conscience). In the context of terrorism prevention, these techniques operationalise EVIL DONE by informing risk registers, layered defences, and multi-agency strategies. As featured in programmes like the Institute of Strategic Risk Management’s (ISRM) Level 5 Award in Terrorism Prevention and Management, SCP fosters integrated, whole-of-society approaches that complement Sri Lanka’s intelligence-led policing and major event security expertise proving far more sustainable than episodic reliance on emergency powers.

Sri Lanka’s past provides compelling case studies. During the LTTE era, attackers masterfully exploited Iconic, Legitimate, and Vital targets, the Dalada Maligawa bombing, political assassinations, and economic infrastructure strikes. The group’s calculated campaigns demonstrated bounded rationality: timing assaults for maximum propaganda value while minimising immediate risks. Post-2009, the 2019 Easter Sunday carnage starkly illustrated Easy + Occupied + Iconic vulnerabilities. Coordinated suicide bombings on churches and luxury hotels during peak hours exploited soft targets, intelligence gaps, and communal tensions, resulting in over 270 deaths. Major international events, such as CHOGM 2013 and cricket World Cups, where robust coordination proved effective, further underscore the value of layered defences informed by opportunity reduction.

Yet today’s threats extend far beyond conventional terrorism, demanding an expanded application of EVIL DONE. The Tamil diaspora, particularly segments in Canada, the UK, Europe, and Australia, presents a complex transnational dimension. While much diaspora activity centres on legitimate advocacy for accountability and reconciliation, residual networks have historically facilitated financing, propaganda, and logistics.

In EVIL DONE terms, these amplify Near, Easy, and Iconic risks through digital coordination and grievance narratives. Proactive strategies balanced intelligence sharing, diaspora outreach, and counter-narratives could reduce opportunities without alienating communities. Models from the Sri Lanka Wakfs Board’s interfaith initiatives offer a blueprint for inclusive engagement.

Ethnic and racial tensions, exacerbated by hate speech, further elevate vulnerabilities. In our multi-ethnic society, online and offline incitement targeting Tamils, Muslims, or other groups turns religious sites and cultural events into high-scoring Iconic + Legitimate + Occupied targets. Sri Lanka’s ICCPR Act No. 56 of 2007, incorporating Article 20(2) prohibitions on incitement to hatred, provides a legal foundation, yet selective enforcement erodes credibility and fuels cycles of distrust.

Applying EVIL DONE here means integrating hate speech monitoring into risk registers, bolstering digital guardianship, and promoting community policing to deny attackers the social fissures they exploit. Consistent application across governments is essential, not the “crying foul” hypocrisy that characterises much of our politics.

The narcotics-terror nexus demands unrelenting vigilance. Sri Lanka’s strategic position as an Indian Ocean transit hub has long exposed us to heroin, synthetic drugs, and organised crime networks. Battling the drug mafia is not a peripheral law enforcement issue but a core national security imperative. These syndicates corrupt institutions, erode community cohesion through widespread addiction, generate illicit funds that potentially finance extremism, and create vulnerable recruitment pools for radical ideologies. In EVIL DONE analysis, trafficking operations exploit Vital + Destructible + Easy nodes, ports, border controls, financial systems, and urban distribution networks, while turning addiction-plagued neighbourhoods into Occupied soft targets ripe for exploitation.

Continuing this battle requires sustained intelligence-led operations, inter-agency coordination, maritime domain awareness, and community rehabilitation programmes. Only by dismantling these mafia networks can we sever symbiotic links between drug profits and terrorism, preventing the social decay that undermines hard-won peace.

Cyber threats compound these risks in our digital age. Ransomware attacks, phishing campaigns, and data breaches on government and private systems expose Exposed + Vital + Easy infrastructure. Breaches not only erode public trust but enable disinformation that inflames ethnic divisions or facilitates hybrid operations. Adapting EVIL DONE to the cyber domain, scoring digital assets for visibility, criticality, and guardianship, alongside enhancements to Sri Lanka CERT and public-private partnerships, is imperative. The emphasis on capability development through training and exercises provides a ready pathway.

Globally, the framework’s strengths lie in its actionability and flexibility. It enables cost-effective prioritisation, adapts to static and dynamic targets (including major events and urban resilience), and integrates seamlessly with intelligence-led policing. Empirical applications in the UK, Istanbul, and beyond demonstrate its predictive value, particularly the “DONE” elements for modern lone-actor and low-tech threats. Supplements like the TRACK (The TRACK – Tolerant- Relevant- Accessible-Known – framework is a contemporary extension of the EVIL DONE model, developed by researchers Zoe Marchment and Paul Gill (around 2020). It focuses specifically on the spatial and operational dynamics of how terrorists choose targets in modern contexts) framework can address spatial dynamics. Limitations must be acknowledged honestly.

EVIL DONE assumes bounded rationality, potentially undervaluing deeply ideological or suicidal actors. Over-reliance risks creating a “fortress society” or unintended threat displacement without tackling grievances. In Sri Lanka, empirical validation through local case studies is needed, alongside safeguards to ensure ICCPR compliance and avoid over-hardening that stifles freedoms.

The path forward is clear.

First , pilot EVIL DONE scoring in national risk registers, incorporating hybrid scenarios involving diaspora links, hate speech, drugs, and cyber vectors.

Second , embed it in professional development at the Police Academy, military institutions, and other stakeholders such as the immigration and emigration, customs, drug control board and coast guards etc.

Third , develop Sri Lanka-specific analyses for training, policy, and publications, including contributions to the national security discourse. Fourth, institutionalise consistent, oversight-driven application to transcend political cycles.

Finally , foster regional SAARC collaboration and leverage interfaith platforms for community resilience.

Sri Lanka’s hard-won peace after defeating LTTE terrorism and navigating post-Easter reforms positions us as a global thought leader in counter-terrorism. Embracing tools like EVIL DONE honours the sacrifices of the past while securing the future. It demands statesmanship over short-termism, principled consistency in law application, intelligence-driven prevention, and whole-of-society unity. As we confront hybrid threats in an interconnected world, opportunity reduction offers not just defence, but a pathway to enduring harmony and resilience. Our policymakers must choose brains over power, strategy over expediency. The alternative is perpetual vulnerability.

Mahil Dole, SSP (Retired), is the former Head of the Counter-Terrorism Division of the State Intelligence Service of Sri Lanka, and has served as Head of the Sri Lankan Delegation at three BIMSTEC Security Conferences. With over 40 years of experience in policing and intelligence, he writes on regional security, interfaith relations, and geopolitical strategy.

By Mahil Dole ssp rtd.

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Opinion

Corruption: A concept to be understood properly

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Many of us know that post-independence Sri Lanka is nearly eight decades old, yet the country has not achieved the level of growth and development necessary to ensure a high quality of life for its citizens. Most people point fingers at the politicians who governed the country and criticize their economic policies. One of the most recent accusations against political leaders is corruption. This concern becomes evident when analysing measures such as the Corruption Perceptions Index and examining recent incidents such as the Central Bank bond scam. Ultimately, the country had to face severe economic downturns and a declining standard of living. Consequently, Sri Lanka was compelled to reform its legal framework by introducing new laws for the implementation of monetary policy and the control of corruption, while also seeking assistance from international organisations. It is true that the effective enforcement of the law can reduce corruption. However, achieving meaningful results requires a broader understanding of corruption, along with improvements in legal mechanisms and more effective methods of enforcement. This short write-up aims to familiarise citizens with a broader definition of corruption, its various forms, and several measures that can be adopted to combat corruption effectively and efficiently.

Corruption undermines democracy

As stated by the United Nations, corruption undermines democracy and the rule of law, leads to violations of human rights, distorts markets, erodes the quality of life, and allows organised crime, terrorism, and other threats to human security to flourish. It is also a key factor contributing to economic underperformance and a major obstacle to poverty alleviation and sustainable development. Furthermore, corruption represents a failure of governance, as it distorts the allocation of resources and weakens government performance. The World Bank defines corruption as “the misuse of public office for private gain.” In this context, public power is abused by elected politicians or appointed public officials for personal benefit. In the modern global economy, no country can be considered completely free from corruption; therefore, corruption remains a global issue.

Academic literature provides numerous definitions of corruption, and many researchers have proposed various theories to explain it. The relationships between corruption and other socio-economic variables have been widely analysed, while both its causes and effects have been extensively discussed. The United Nations Convention Against Corruption, introduced in 2004, proposed several measures to combat corruption. Nevertheless, corruption continues to remain high in many developing countries and is also evident, to some extent, in developed economies. Sri Lanka is no exception. Authorities responsible for controlling corruption in Sri Lanka have acknowledged that investigations and prosecutions alone are insufficient to effectively combat corruption. Therefore, expanding the frontiers of knowledge on corruption, particularly in the Sri Lankan context, is of timely and national importance.

Although the literature provides and explains many definitions of corruption, there is no single universally accepted definition. In efforts to combat corruption effectively, definitions must encompass a broader range of ideas, and people should properly understand the various forms and dimensions of corruption.

Certain improper activities carried out by public sector officials are difficult to categorise strictly as the “abuse of public property for private gain.” For example, in the public sector, failure to properly perform assigned duties, leaving official work unfinished despite being entrusted with responsibilities, taking unnecessarily long periods to complete official tasks, using excessive public resources, and deliberately delaying public services can all be considered forms of corruption or administrative misconduct. Furthermore, in some instances, officials and institutional heads intentionally remain silent about the corrupt activities of others, assist corrupt individuals in concealing evidence, or show reluctance, lethargy, or unwillingness to take legal action against corrupt public officers. Although Sri Lanka’s Anti-Corruption Act No. 9 of 2023 defines corruption, it does not explicitly incorporate all of these dimensions.

Moreover, legalised corruption is another issue that deserves attention. This relates to weaknesses or manipulations in the process of framing laws and regulations. Certain actions may not directly fall under the definition of the “use of public property for private gain,” yet they may still represent indirect or extended forms of corruption. Therefore, for the successful control and prevention of corruption, broader and more comprehensive definitions are required.

Forms of Corruption

Corruption may appear in various forms. If the economy is broadly divided into the public and private sectors, corruption can be analysed under two major categories: public sector–specific corruption and public–private sector corruption. The first category refers to corruption that occurs solely within the public sector, while the second involves the abuse of public resources in transactions or interactions between the public and private sectors.

Within the first category, corruption may occur not only at the individual level but also collectively. Individual corruption takes place when a single public officer abuses public resources or authority for personal gain. However, collective corruption involves coordinated behavior among groups of public officials. This collective behavior may occur within a particular institutional hierarchy or among several related institutions and hierarchies. For example, within a single hierarchy, when a citizen visits a public office to obtain a service, a particular officer may be responsible for handling the relevant task. If the officer is corrupt, he or she may deliberately avoid performing the required duty by raising irrelevant objections or refusing to provide the service efficiently. In some cases, the officer may intentionally insert doubtful or questionable remarks into official documents and forward them to a superior officer in order to obstruct the successful completion of the request.

At times, superior officers themselves may instruct subordinate officers on the type of comments or procedural objections that can be used to justify rejecting a request when no personal benefit or reward is received. Conversely, when a material reward or bribe is offered, all officials involved may cooperate and share the benefit among themselves. This represents a collective form of corruption confined within a particular hierarchy in the public sector, without any direct involvement from the private sector.

Collective corruption may also occur across two or more institutions or hierarchies that are required to work together. Such situations are often observed in the process of taking legal action against criminal offences. If the relevant institutions fail to perform their duties honestly and effectively, the legal process may collapse. Where officials within these institutions act corruptly or engage in favoritism, they may collectively benefit from rewards or unlawful advantages received in exchange for their cooperation or inaction. This is another form of collective corruption that exists entirely within the public sector.

In such circumstances, the rule of law becomes ineffective. Therefore, there is a strong need to recognise and incorporate these collective patterns of corrupt behavior into broader definitions and theories of corruption. This may also provide a foundation for the development of new theoretical approaches to understanding corruption in the public sector.

For the second category, namely public–private sector corruption, many examples can be identified. Tender procedures and procurement activities conducted by state institutions are common practices in every country. When private sector actors attempt to influence public officials through rewards, bribes, or other benefits in order to secure favorable decisions, such actions fall within this category of corruption.

In some instances, private individuals who work in association with public institutions may collaborate to generate undue benefits for themselves. For example, within the court system, lawyers are paid by plaintiffs and defendants for legal representation. Certain lawyers may intentionally delay court proceedings for personal financial gain. In some cases, lawyers representing opposing parties — such as plaintiffs and defendants or co-owners in partition cases — may unofficially cooperate to prolong legal procedures, including the delayed submission of documents or repeated postponements of hearings. By extending the duration of cases, they may maximize the payments received for their court appearances and related services. Such practices can also be regarded as a form of corruption linked to the interaction between public institutions and private actors.

Moreover, within public institutions, when one official engages in corrupt activities, superior officers or fellow officials may intentionally remain silent without reporting the misconduct or taking disciplinary action against the corrupt individual. In Sri Lanka, different political parties have governed the country from time to time; however, corruption has remained widespread under many administrations. Prior to elections, political leaders frequently promise to eliminate corruption and publicly declare that legal action will be taken against corrupt individuals once they are elected. Nevertheless, after assuming power, many fail to fulfill these promises and often avoid taking legal action against corrupt individuals connected either to previous governments or to their own administrations.

Even when certain public officials initiate legal action against corrupt individuals, procedural loopholes or omissions may intentionally be allowed to weaken the effectiveness of such actions. If a superior officer or relevant authority deliberately ignores corruption or fails to take proper legal measures, such behavior may itself be regarded as a secondary form of corruption, which can be described as “corruption on corruption.” Therefore, officials who knowingly tolerate, conceal, or fail to act against corruption should also be considered corrupt.

Preventive Measures

Law serves as the strongest safeguard and a key preventive measure against corruption. However, when the legal framework governing corruption is expanded, the size of government may also increase, and as a result, tax burdens may rise. On the other hand, an excessively enlarged government may itself create additional opportunities for corruption. Therefore, policymakers must exercise caution when designing preventive measures.

It is true that law enforcement institutions take action and punish corrupt individuals with the aim of combating corruption. However, even when legal provisions are adequately established, enforcement is often weak or inconsistent in some countries. In certain cases, legal actions are not taken at all, or they are not implemented effectively against corrupt individuals. At times, officials may deliberately allow omissions or procedural weaknesses within legal processes. In other situations, the legal framework itself may be inadequate, containing loopholes that hinder effective enforcement. In such circumstances, the law must be reformed and made more efficient. Policymakers therefore need to explore new approaches to strengthening anti-corruption legislation. For instance, if legislation clearly states that every employee within a public institution is accountable for corrupt activities occurring within that institution, it may enhance collective responsibility and help prevent collective forms of corruption. Furthermore, when corruption occurs within an institution, heads of institutions or relevant legal authorities may sometimes remain silent. Such silence can enable the continuation and spread of corruption, a situation that may be described as “corruption on corruption.” To address this, legal provisions could be extended to define the deliberate silence or inaction of institutional leaders in the face of known corruption as a punishable offence. Thus, continuous efforts are needed to explore and strengthen legal mechanisms in order to make anti-corruption laws more effective and comprehensive.

Conclusion

Corruption may appear in various forms, and everyone needs to remain vigilant about it. Those who engage in corruption, as well as those who remain silent and fail to take adequate measures to control it, are equally responsible for the persistence of corruption. If the law can be effectively enforced without unnecessarily expanding the size of government, it would be more beneficial for social welfare. Therefore, a broader and more inclusive definition of corruption is required for its successful control. Certain activities may not strictly fall within the internationally recognized definition of corruption as the “use of public property for private gain.” Although Sri Lanka’s Anti-Corruption Act No. 9 of 2023 provides a relatively broader definition, it still does not fully capture all such practices. Moreover, legalised corruption is another important issue that requires further discussion, particularly in relation to the processes of law-making and law enforcement. This includes situations where legal frameworks themselves may be designed or applied in ways that indirectly enable corrupt practices.

by Dr. Tikiri Nimal Herath
Emeritus Professor
tikiriherath@gmail.com

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