By W.A. Wijewardena –

CT at 15 is not a teenager but a mature adult

As the Colombo Telegraph marks its 15th anniversary, it celebrates a significant milestone in global independent media, having provided sharp news and socio-political analysis to an international audience. In conventional terms, a fifteen-year-old is considered a teenager—rebellious, still learning, inclined to criticise, and expecting others to follow. But the Colombo Telegraph passed through that stage very quickly; it is no longer a teenager but a mature adult. Over the past decade and a half, the platform has bridged the gap between Sri Lankan realities and the wider world, guided by its defining tagline: In Journalism, Truth is a Process. This principle captures the essence of the site’s mission. Truth is rarely an immediate revelation; it cannot be established overnight. It demands time, rigorous verification, and persistence. Yet this rule extends far beyond the newsroom. In almost every human endeavour, truth requires a timeline. The public is often slow to internalise new realities. Because collective learning takes time, time itself becomes the most crucial factor in the ultimate triumph of truth. Hence, the Colombo Telegraph’s tagline expresses a universal truth: people must exercise patience, attention, and persistence until they discover the ultimate truth. This is the message that the Colombo Telegraph has conveyed to its readers.

A single man’s enterprise

The survival of the Colombo Telegraph defies the conventional economics of modern media. Operating entirely from overseas, the website has sustained its global impact without a formal financial resource base, corporate backing, or institutional funding. It is the relentless handiwork of one individual: its editor, Uvindu Kurukulasuriya. In an era of expansive newsrooms, Uvindu embodies the entire operation, functioning simultaneously as editor, reader, word processor, page setter, researcher, and publisher. Despite this lean infrastructure, the platform’s global reach is immense. It has become essential reading across the globe for anyone seeking uncompromised facts regarding Sri Lanka and emerging global events—an organic popularity that remains unmatched by many well-funded mainstream competitors. If the Colombo Telegraph is a success, so is its creator, Uvindu Kurukulasuriya who has given up every comfort for his life mission.

Uvindu: an unappeasable learner

This uncompromising pursuit of clarity was evident long before the birth of the website. Decades ago, during my tenure as a visiting lecturer in development economics at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Uvindu was a student in my class, reading for an honours degree in International Trade (Special). Amidst dozens of students in the lecture hall, he stood out as a prominent, intellectually independent figure. He never accepted an assertion without subjecting it to his own critical analysis. Our classroom sessions frequently turned into intense debates. Yet, these exchanges were always strictly professional, never personal. If the evidence was sound, Uvindu possessed the humility to concede. If an argument failed to convince him, the responsibility fell on me to prove the point—not instantly, but over a period of sustained dialogue. We are still debating on various issues of which the roots were planted many years ago in a lecture hall at the university. This is not uncommon because knowledge acquisition is never an overnight event; it is a continuous process of ‘delearning and relearning’. Uvindu realised this truth perfectly and still believes in it. Thus, it is highly probable that the tagline guiding the Colombo Telegraph today was forged in the crucible of those early academic debates that sought to find truth ultimately.

Always standing for core-values

Throughout its 15-year journey, the Colombo Telegraph has earned a formidable reputation for its impartial approach to the complex social, political, and economic crises plaguing Sri Lanka. Demonstrating rare journalistic valour, the platform consistently publishes articles that are directly critical of its own editorial line, opening the public square to dissenting voices. However, beneath this commitment to open debate, one standard remains entirely non-negotiable: its editorial stance has never wavered from the foundational pillars of truth, justice, democracy, liberty, and human rights. For 15 years, under changing political regimes in Sri Lanka and shifting global tides elsewhere, it has held the line on these core principles, vowing to carry this legacy firmly into the future.

No need for best wishes

Ultimately, it is remarkable that the Colombo Telegraph has survived and thrived entirely devoid of political patronage, corporate funding, or elite favour. Even when faced with overt threats and systemic hostility, it has refused to deviate from its high ethical standards. This unyielding internal moral compass is the true secret to its continuity and success. Backed by such intrinsic fortitude, the publication does not rely on superficial well-wishes for its survival. It possesses an innate momentum that ensures it will continue to serve the public interest, charting its own course irrespective of external pressures. Having witnessed its roots and its evolution, I know this to be an absolute certainty. I, therefore, do not offer the Colombo Telegraph my good wishes at this historic milestone. That is because it does not need our good wishes for continuity and survival in a hostile world.

*The writer, a regular columnist of the Colombo Telegraph, can be reached at waw1949@gmail.com