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.
US Withdrawal from Afghanistan and Its Impact on Sri Lankan Democracy
Pradeep Peiris
The last United States (US) security contingent left Afghanistan at midnight on 30th August 2021, ending a 20-year...
The Insurrectionary JVP and the Sri Lankan State
Mick Moore
Much has been written about the insurrectionary Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP—Peoples Liberation Front). The main...
‘The Oddest of Odd Corners’: Rosa Luxemburg’s Afterlife in Ceylon
B. Skanthakumar
Rosa Luxemburg, the early 20th century Polish-Jewish revolutionary born in Zamosc 150 years ago on March 5th this...
The IMF Can’t Save Sri Lanka
Devaka Gunawardena
Among elite policy makers and experts, there is an unshakeable belief that going to the International Monetary Fund...
Sri Lanka’s Left isn’t ‘Taking Democracy Seriously’
Devaka Gunawardena
The Left in Sri Lanka—currently more of an aspirational idea, than an active movement—is once again at the crossroads....
A call to action against the detention of Hejaaz Hizbullah and Ahnaf Jazeem, anti-Muslim violence, and attacks on democracy
Decades of majoritarian politics, and the more recent descent towards authoritarianism and militarisation, have eroded...
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.