When spirituality meets town planning, even Nirvana appears to require government approval. ANURADHAPURA, SRI LANKA — In a remarkable demonstration of how ancient spiritual traditions can collide with modern administrative complications, three Buddhist monks have launched a hunger strike in Sri Lanka’s historic city of Anuradhapura, demanding that the government withdraw its proposed redevelopment plan for the sacred area. The ...

As Alberta approaches a pivotal referendum, the province finds itself at a crossroads, not merely over a political question, but over the kind of future its people wish to build for themselves, their children and generations yet to come. With the final day of advance voting arriving amid fierce prairie winds, Albertans on both sides of the debate took to ...

Gnanasara’s return to prison reignites debate over judicial independence, religious authority and political privilege, while President Anura Kumara Dissanayake insists that no individual is above the law. Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court decision to invalidate the presidential pardon granted to controversial Buddhist monk Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thero has reopened a long-running debate over the rule of law, political influence and the ...

COLOMBO –  Sri Lanka intends to complete its current International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme when the four-year Extended Fund Facility (EFF) expires in March 2027 and does not currently plan to seek a successor programme linked to debt restructuring, Minister Bimal Rathnayake has said. Rathnayake said the government would end the present IMF arrangement but would continue normal engagement with ...