Polity aims to advance democratic consciousness, gender equality, state reform, and social change in Sri Lanka, while interested in South Asia and the World.
As its predecessor Pravada (1991-2002), Polity is published by the Social Scientists’ Association in Colombo, with critical content on politics, political economy, history, women, ethnicity, sexualities, religion, labour studies, agrarian relations, nationalisms, violence, ecology, and much more.
Independence Day
Binu Peiris
The Lankan flag sways high and mighty on Galle Face Green,The Lion roars with pride, bowing before Samarakoon’s...
“One day, nobody will even ask about us”: The obsolete silversmiths of Kandy
Hasini Lecamwasam
In the course of research into why the traditional craft economy, despite being a key medium through which Sinhala...
The Cannon and the Cranium: Towards a Wider Agenda for Reparatory Justice in Sri Lanka
Andi Schubert
Lara Wijesuriya’s excellent recent essay is a wonderful invitation for further conversation about the politics of...
When crises converge: how uneven agrarian development influences the effects of climate change in Sri Lanka’s North-Central dry zone
Harry M. Quealy and Cherisma Rajaratnam
In 2016-2017, Sri Lanka’s North-Central dry zone suffered what had been described as the worst drought in decades...
Palestine and Us
Editors
Three months of atrocity upon atrocity and abomination upon abomination have passed since the dogs of war were...
Budget 2024: ‘Deep Marketisation’ in Sri Lanka
B. Skanthakumar
Ranil Wickremesinghe’s Budget for 2024 had safe passage on third reading on 13 December as expected, with a majority...
Current Issue
Out Now! Vol. 13 No. 2 (July – December 2025). 148 pages. #SriLanka. Politics. Cyclone Ditwah. Ecology. Feminism. Education. Justice. Domestic Violence Act. History. Culture. Work. Labour. Books. Cover Picture Sakuna M. Gamage. LKR1000 from the Social Scientists’ Association or Barefoot or SLBOOKS.lk.
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Archive
Pravada (1991-2002) and Polity (2003-) back issues available here.
Social Scientists’ Association
The Social Scientists’ Association (SSA) was founded in 1977, at a turning point in Sri Lankan politics, economy, and society, marked by among other aspects: the ‘open economy’ market reforms; deepening ethnic conflict; and the growing concentration of executive power. Its initiators were academics from public universities, seeking an autonomous space to grapple with these shifts; and to promote progressive political, economic, and social change.