By Thomas Scaria Colombo, April 27, 2023: (Editor’s note: Global Sisters Report’s new series, Hope Amid Turmoil: Sisters in Conflict Areas, offers a look at the lives and ministries of women religious serving in dangerous places worldwide. The news stories, columns and Q&As in this series will include sisters inContinue Reading
By Thomas Scaria Mangaluru, Feb 7, 2022: The Apostolic Carmel Sisters on February 5 celebrated 100 years of their services in Sri Lanka. Known for their quality education, especially in the empowerment of girls and women, the congregation was invited by the Sri Lankan Church to establish educational institutions thereContinue Reading
By Thomas Scaria Kandy, Sri Lanka, Jan 30, 2022: Until early 2021, Salvatorian Sister Dulcie Peiris was on the forefront of a project to reconcile Sinhalese and Tamils, members of two ethnic communities in Sri Lanka that fought a bitter civil war for more than 25 years. The 1983-2009 warContinue Reading
Colombo, Catholics in Sri Lanka wore black and hoisted black flags on Aug. 21 to show their indignation over what they see as the government’s failure to respond adequately the 2019 Easter Sunday attack on churches. Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith of Colombo has been urging the government to name those behindContinue Reading
Colombo: Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith of Colombo has called on the people to demonstrate August 21 to protest what he described as the government’s failure to shed light on the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings. “Raise a black flag on August 21 in front of your homes, institutions and market places asContinue Reading
Colombo: A Sri Lankan Catholic archbishop appealed to the country’s Muslims on April 21 to reject extremism and join Catholics in determining the truth behind Easter Sunday suicide bombings in 2019 that killed 269 people. Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith of Colombo made the appeal during a commemoration of the second anniversaryContinue Reading
Colombo: Sri Lanka will soon ban the burqa or face veil, a Cabinet Minister said on Saturday, as he announced the Rajapaksa administration’s latest policy decision impacting the minority Muslim community. Public Security Minister Sarath Weerasekara said authorities would henceforth use the controversial Prevention of Terrorism (PTA) law — thatContinue Reading
Cololbo, July 22, 2020: Sri Lankan authorities on July 22 announced that birth certificates for new born children in future will not mention their parents’ race, religion or the marital status. Registrar General of the Registrar General’s Department, N. C. Vithanage told local media that all details pertaining to marriage,Continue Reading
Colombo, Apr 15, 2020: Sri Lankan police on April 15 claimed to have made two high-profile arrests in the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks. They have arrested a prominent lawyer and a Muslim political party leader’s brother who allegedly had links with one of the suicide bombers. Nine suicide bombers carriedContinue Reading
Colombo, May 16, 2019: Sri Lankan authorities say Buddhist groups were likely to blame for a wave of anti-Muslim riots that swept the island in the second week of May in apparent retaliation for Easter bombings. The April 21 attacks, claimed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the LevantContinue Reading