Polity aims to advance democratic consciousness, gender equity, 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.
Democracy: A Feminist Perspective
V. Geetha
The Rajani Thiranagama Memorial Lecture was delivered in Tamil by V. Geetha on 2 October 2021. When I was invited to...
The Changing Role of Caste in Northern Sri Lanka. Thiruchandran, Selvy. Caste and its Multiple Manifestations: A Study of the Caste System in Northern Sri Lanka. Colombo: Bay Owl Press, 2021, pp. 231 + xii
Reviewed by Kalinga Tudor Silva
Caste in Sri Lanka is something of an enigma to social critics and social researchers alike. People do not justify,...
What is this Crisis?
Ahilan Kadirgamar
Dr. Ahilan Kadirgamar made this presentation at an online discussion on the current economic crisis in Sri Lanka,...
Our broken nation lies before us: ‘The People’s Command’
From the Galle Face Aragalaya bhoomi
Our broken nation lies before us, caught up in an unprecedented social and economic tragedy of incomparable historic...
The IMF in Debt Restructuring, the Resurgence of Austerity, and the Urgency of Fiscal Justice
Bhumika Muchhala
As Sri Lanka officially defaults on its sovereign debt repayments, and enters negotiations with the International...
An Undemocratic Political Deal
FUTA on Ranil Wickremesinghe Appointment
As the national trade union representing university academics, which has stood firmly behind the ongoing people’s...
Current Issue
Vol. 14 No. 1 (January – June 2026). 134 pages. Gananath Obeyesekere Memorial. NPP and Neutrality. Iran Solidarity. Justice for Easter Sunday. Chemmani. Cyclone Ditwah. Flood Relief. Microfinance Bill. Peasant Politics. Lunar Calendar. Partitions. Women’s Health. Malaiyaha History. Diasporic memory. Mannar’s ecology. Aloysius Peiris SJ. Cover image Ranjini Obeyesekere. LKR1000 from the Social Scientists’ Association or Barefoot or SLBOOKS.lk.
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.
