Our Special Correspondent

Our Special Correspondent

The writer behind the byline ‘Our Special Correspondent’ is also the editor-in-chief of Jaffna Monitor.

Sallay Detained 90 Days Under PTA

Sallay Detained 90 Days Under PTA

COLOMBO — Sri Lankan investigators have obtained legal authority to detain Suresh Sallay, the former Director of the State Intelligence Service, for up to 90 days under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), marking the most high-profile arrest in the nearly seven-year investigation into the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings. Sallay, a retired Major General, was en route to his office at the Pathfinder Foundation in Colombo when officers from the Criminal Investigation Department intercepted and arre
February 2026 Monitor Memo
Our Special Correspondent

Our Special Correspondent
“The Ball Is in Your Court Now,” Moscow Says on Financial Talks With Colombo

“The Ball Is in Your Court Now,” Moscow Says on Financial Talks With Colombo

COLOMBO — Russia's Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Levan Dzhagaryan, delivered a detailed review of Moscow's foreign policy at a press briefing held at the Russian Embassy in Colombo this week, dismissing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as an illegitimate leader whose mandate had long expired. Responding to a question from Jaffna Monitor regarding potential Russian investment in Sri Lanka, the ambassador said, “Where should we invest? Unfortunately, we have no projects here to invest in.” The
February 2026
Our Special Correspondent

Our Special Correspondent
In Jaffna, Critics See a New Architecture of Control

In Jaffna, Critics See a New Architecture of Control

JAFFNA, SRI LANKA — When a prominent doctor in the Northern Province set out to organise a community programme through his professional civil society network, he expected the usual obstacles: bureaucratic delays, funding constraints, and coordination challenges between departments. What he encountered instead was something entirely different. According to multiple credible sources who spoke with Jaffna Monitor on condition of anonymity, fearing professional consequences, the doctor was told tha
February 2026 Monitor Memo
Our Special Correspondent

Our Special Correspondent
Former LTTE Fighter Says Debt Cost Her a Kidney

Former LTTE Fighter Says Debt Cost Her a Kidney

MANNAR, Sri Lanka: The war took her leg. The peace, she says, took her kidney. Along Sri Lanka's northwestern coast, where lagoons fringed with palmyra palms still hold the quiet residue of a three-decade civil conflict, a former female combatant of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam says she survived artillery fire and battlefield amputation — only to be driven, years later, into selling one of her kidneys to repay a high-interest loan. "I survived the war," she said, seated inside her that
February 2026
Our Special Correspondent

Our Special Correspondent
“Equality for Brussels, But Not for the Estates,” Plantation Leaders Tell EU

“Equality for Brussels, But Not for the Estates,” Plantation Leaders Tell EU

Representatives of Sri Lanka's historically marginalised plantation Tamil community have urged the European Union to ensure that the country's continued access to preferential trade benefits under the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) is tied to measurable progress on land rights, housing equity, and labour protections in estate regions. The appeal came during a meeting in Colombo this week between leaders of the Tamil Progressive Alliance (TPA) and a visiting delegation from the Eu
February 2026 Monitor Memo
Our Special Correspondent

Our Special Correspondent
ITAK and dTNA Float Common Tamil Political Document Amid Internal Rifts

ITAK and dTNA Float Common Tamil Political Document Amid Internal Rifts

The Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) and the Democratic Tamil National Alliance (dTNA)—a grouping formed by parties that broke away from the Tamil National Alliance (TNA)—have decided to jointly prepare a political document which they describe as reflecting the aspirations of the Tamil people. The two sides have also invited other Tamil political parties operating within the Tamil national political space to participate in the process. Addressing a joint media briefing alongside EPRLF Leader
Article January 2026
Our Special Correspondent

Our Special Correspondent
“ICCR scholars have shaped Sri Lanka’s higher education landscape,” says Ankuran Dutta

“ICCR scholars have shaped Sri Lanka’s higher education landscape,” says Ankuran Dutta

Prof. (Dr.) Ankuran Dutta is an academic and public intellectual who serves as the Director of the Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre (SVCC), the cultural arm of the High Commission of India in Sri Lanka. SVCC functions under the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), which oversees India’s cultural and educational outreach abroad. He recently visited Jaffna, where SVCC is a major partner of the Jaffna International Cinema Festival. In this interview with us, Prof. Dutta discusses SVCC’s
Special Interview January 2026
Our Special Correspondent

Our Special Correspondent
“My Fellow Russians, Avoid Europe and Unfriendly Countries—Visit Sri Lanka Instead,” Says Russian Ambassador Levan S. Dzhagaryan

“My Fellow Russians, Avoid Europe and Unfriendly Countries—Visit Sri Lanka Instead,” Says Russian Ambassador Levan S. Dzhagaryan

On January 5 and 6, Jaffna received a rare diplomatic visitor. Levan S. Dzhagaryan, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Sri Lanka and the Maldives, spent two days in the Northern Province at a time when international attention is slowly returning to the region. Against this backdrop, Jaffna Monitor sat down with him for an exclusive conversation, discussing geopolitics, cultural ties, tourism, education, and Russia’s engagement with Sri Lanka’s North and East. How has your visit to Jaffna b
Special Interview January 2026
Our Special Correspondent

Our Special Correspondent