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Articles by Neil DeVotta
Reforms stall in AKD’s Sri Lanka
After nearly 18 months in power, Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake (popularly known as AKD) and his National People’s Power (NPP) coalition are governing with mixed results. The coalition, led by the once-insurrectionary Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) party, has prioritised stability over radical change. But mounting lapses, delayed reforms and exogenous shocks threaten its popular mandate.
Why South Asia’s Regimes Keep Falling
The government of Nepal has become the third South Asian government to collapse amid mass protests in three years. It will take more than elections to restore stability. Young protesters want to see real change. By Paul Staniland September 2025 On September 8, large-scale demonstrations began in Kathmandu and spread across Nepal after the government banned major social-media platforms.
Breaking the cycle of old politics in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka’s 2024 elections have ushered in a seismic shift, with Anura Kumara Dissanayake (often known by his initials ‘AKD’) of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) becoming president in September 2024 and the JVP-led National People’s Power (NPP) alliance winning a parliamentary supermajority in November 2024. The two elections represent a political realignment, empowering a new class of elites while marginalising long-dominant politicians.
Sri Lanka's Peaceful Revolution
Writing about Sri Lanka's January 2015 presidential election a year after it happened, I called it "a win for democracy"1 given how challenger Maithripala Sirisena had turned strongman incumbent Mahinda Rajapaksa out of office following a decade in power.
Sri Lanka in 2024: Political Realignment and the Road Ahead – South Asian Voices
In 2024, Sri Lanka conducted both presidential and parliamentary elections that realigned its political order.
The Man Who Would Oust a Dynasty
A few years ago Anura Kumara Dissanayake led a struggling political party with bleak prospects. Now he is Sri Lanka’s newly elected president. The hardest work may still lie ahead. By Marlon Ariyasinghe In the early hours of Sunday, September 22, as I sat confined in an airplane in transit, Sri Lanka was navigating a transition of its own.
Continuity with change in Sri Lanka’s presidential election | East Asia Forum
Sri Lanka’s presidential election is scheduled for 21 September. Ranil Wickremesinghe, whom parliament elected president when Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled in July 2022, would have preferred to postpone the polls. His government’s measures to stabilise the economy in line with International Monetary Fund (IMF) recommendations and his aversion to sidelining the most corrupt members of the Rajapaksa family have made him unpopular.
WFU in the news: Aug. 26-Sept. 1, 2024
Do you have a case of the ‘September Scaries?’ By Elizabeth Angell | The New York Times Many of us currently find ourselves in the grips of the “September Scaries.” Those familiar with the concept of the Sunday Scaries will recognize this feeling. You could try “microdosing” a few September tasks this week, said psychology professor Christian Waugh, who studies positive coping mechanisms. Slow transitions are always easier than rapid ones.
Sri Lanka’s Potential Political Realignment – South Asian Voices
Sri Lanka is scheduled for its next presidential election between September and October 2024. Its previous presidential poll in November 2019 saw Gotabaya Rajapaksa easily elected. Yet massive anti-government protests related to inflation and scarcity forced President Rajapaksa to flee the country in July 2022. This was after Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa — his brother who was president from 2005 to 2015 — had fled two months before.
Neil DeVotta, Author at South Asian Voices
Neil DeVotta is a professor of politics and international affairs at Wake Forest University. He is the author of Blowback: Linguistic Nationalism, Institutional Decay, and Ethnic Conflict in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka embraces tourists but confronts illegal ventures
International tourism is again attracting controversy, this time due to visitors on tourist visas running businesses in developing Asian countries. Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Sri Lanka has allowed Russians and Ukrainians to enter the country without paying visa fees in a bid to boost tourism. Desperate for foreign exchange following its sovereign debt default in 2022, Sri Lanka has turned a blind eye to some of these visitors running businesses.
Hong Kong carving its own path of repression
Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee’s announcement that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) will introduce its own national security law in 2024 was a surprise to many given the effectiveness of the national security law Beijing imposed on the territory in 2020. Political dissent has all but been crushed since mass pro-democracy protests shook the city in 2019.
Diplomatic shifts belie continuity in North Korea
In 2023, North Korea continued the foreign policy line it has followed since the failed attempt to compromise with the United States, undertaken during the former Trump administration. The year was marked by four significant shifts in diplomacy, though these shifts might be less important than they appear. First, North Korea’s domestic policy was largely shaped by the rivalry between the United States and China.
Electoral uncertainty casts a shadow over Sri Lanka’s progress
If 2022 ranked as Sri Lanka’s worst-ever economic year, 2023 was relatively stable. The government, headed by President Ranil Wickremesinghe, negotiated with creditors and secured an Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The EFF program made available US$670 million as part of a four-year US$3 billion loan. The Asian Development Bank loaned US$200 million in December 2023 and the World Bank released an additional US$250 million.
An Introduction to South Asian Politics
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Table of Contents Book Description Critics' Reviews 2nd Edition Edited By Neil DeVotta Copyright 2024 The second edition of this introductory textbook provides students with an overarching understanding of social, political, and economic institutions of six South Asian countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Using democracy as a prism, it evaluates the varied opportunities and constraints facing these states.
By Jason Kirk Verified, Neil DeVotta, Anas Malik, Ali Riaz, Prakash Adhikari, Mahendra Lawoti, VIKASH YADAV
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Routledge
Verified
Sri Lanka’s 2022 crisis will hurt for years to come
Economically, 2022 will rank as Sri Lanka’s worst year ever. The immediate reason for the year’s economic carnage was a balance of payments crisis. It was exacerbated by high debt, the Covid-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine War, global central banks hiking interest rates and dumb policy decisions made by the Gotabaya Rajapaksa administration. The crisis prevented Sri Lanka from purchasing essential goods – especially cooking gas, gasoline, fertilizer and medicine.
The past year’s crisis will weigh on Sri Lanka for years to come
Author: Neil DeVotta, Wake Forest University Economically, 2022 will rank as Sri Lanka’s worst year ever. The immediate reason for the year’s economic carnage was a balance of payments crisis. It was exacerbated by high debt, the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia–Ukraine War, global central banks hiking interest rates and dumb policy decisions made by the Gotabaya Rajapaksa administration.
Sri Lanka's Peaceful Revolution
Subscribe On 2024 was widely hailed as the year of elections with 73 countries holding elections in and more than 1.5 billion voters exercising their franchise. On Grand Tamasha, we’ve discussed the 2024 Indian general election as well as the recent U.S. presidential election at some length. But there was another important election in South Asia which has important ramifications both for India and the wider Indo-Pacific.
Colombo’s controversial new president
Author: Neil DeVotta, Wake Forest University On 20 July 2022, Sri Lanka’s parliament voted to make Ranil Wickremasinghe the country’s eighth Executive President until November 2024. That is when Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled the island on 13 July, would have completed his term. Gotabaya’s humiliating exit stemmed from ferocious island-wide protests precipitated by Sri Lanka’s worst ever post-independence economic crisis. Wickremasinghe’s appointment is controversial.
How Political & Economic Mismanagement Pushed Sri Lanka Into Turmoil
Neil DeVotta, professor of politics and international affairs at Wake Forest University, who grew up in Sri Lanka and specializes in South Asian politics, explains what brought about the crisis in Sri Lanka and where the nation of 22 million goes from here. Can you talk us through the latest events? What happened in Sri Lanka was really quite revolutionary. For the first time in the country’s history, you had a president resign – and in the most humiliating manner.
Behind the Crisis in Sri Lanka
By Neil DeVotta Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa formally resigned on July 15, 2022, having earlier fled the country amid widespread protests in the Southern Asian nation. EXPLAINER: [ How Sri Lanka Descended Into Crisis and Protests ] The man who replaced him, Prime Minister and now interim President Ranil Wickremesinghe, is likewise facing calls to go amid political and economic turmoil.
Sri Lanka Crisis: How Political & Economic Abuse Pushed the Nation Into Turmoil
Not quite. While the spark was a balance of payments crisis, I believe that underpinning the mess is a deep-rooted ethnonationalism that has allowed and encouraged corruption, nepotism and short-termism. Since at least the 1950s, Sri Lanka has been in the grips of Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism. The Sinhalese make up around 75 percent of the population, with Tamils at around 15 percent and Muslims at 10 percent.
Behind the crisis in Sri Lanka - how political and economic mismanagement combined to plunge nation into turmoil
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Behind the crisis in Sri Lanka - how political and economic mismanagement combined to plunge nation into turmoil
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Putin's Running Out of Time in Ukraine War
A top Russia advisor to three U.S. presidents explains why the world shouldn’t fall for Moscow’s narrative that it can wait out the West in Ukraine. Fiona Hill, the U.S. National Security Council’s former senior director for Europe and Russia, testifies before the House Intelligence Committee in Washington on Nov. 21, 2019.
Sri Lanka’s road to ruin was political, not economic
On Saturday, Sri Lanka’s horrific saga took a consequential turn when protesters stormed and occupied the presidential offices and both the president’s and prime minister’s official residences. Global media are now filled with videos of protesters swimming in the president’s pool, resting on his bed, using his gym, and fixing meals in his kitchen — after overcoming barricades, tear gas, and beatings.
Biden Has a Lot to Gain in Saudi Arabia
Despite U.S. President Joe Biden’s meandering efforts to explain his about-face on Saudi Arabia—visiting the country this week after having dubbed it a “pariah” on the campaign trail—there remains much apprehension about his trip on both ends of the political spectrum. Progressives and human rights advocates worry the president will sacrifice U.S. values for short-term Faustian bargains in an attempt to secure cheap oil and expand Arab-Israeli normalization.
On Biden’s Middle East Visit, He Will See a New Iraq at the Table
When U.S. President Joe Biden comes to the Middle East this week, he will be arriving in a region facing numerous challenges, from terrorism to food insecurity and climate change. But the Middle East is also a region that is increasingly facing those challenges together under a group of leaders pursuing positive change.
Sri Lanka’s Road to Ruin Was Political, Not Economic
On Saturday, Sri Lanka’s horrific saga took a consequential turn when protesters stormed and occupied the presidential offices and both the president’s and prime minister’s official residences. Global media are now filled with videos of protesters swimming in the president’s pool, resting on his bed, using his gym, and fixing meals in his kitchen—after overcoming barricades, tear gas, and beatings.
Biden’s Middle East Trip Begins In Israel
Welcome to today’s Morning Brief, looking at Biden’s Middle East trip, the U.K. Conservative Party leadership contest, Gotabaya Rajapaksa flees Sri Lanka, and more news worth following from around the world. If you would like to receive Morning Brief in your inbox every weekday, please sign up here. Biden Travels to Israel U.S. President Joe Biden arrives in Israel today on the first leg of a Middle East tour that includes a controversial stop in Saudi Arabia.
Sri Lanka’s Road to Crisis Was Political, Not Economic
On Saturday, Sri Lanka’s horrific saga took a consequential turn when protesters stormed and occupied the presidential offices and both the president’s and prime minister’s official residences. Global media are now filled with videos of protesters swimming in the president’s pool, resting on his bed, using his gym, and fixing meals in his kitchen—after overcoming barricades, tear gas, and beatings.
Mexico's Former President Was Demagogue With Big Dreams
When Luis Echeverría Álvarez, president of Mexico from 1970 to 1976, turned 100 years old this January, Mexican and other Hispanic media dedicated countless television spots and profiles to him and his reign. They were overwhelmingly negative.
Sri Lanka’s struggle to bring down the Rajapaksas
Author: Neil DeVotta, Wake Forest University When Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa banned chemical fertiliser, insecticides and herbicides in May 2021, protesters blamed the government rather than the President or his brother, former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. But this time, spurred by the island’s worst ever economic crisis, protests have turned against Rajapaksa rule. The original fertiliser ban was dictated by a balance of payments crisis.
South Korea’s presidential litmus test
17 February 2022 Author: Kim Kee-seok, Kangwon National University In 2022, two political challenges lie ahead for the ruling Moon Jae-in administration and the Democratic Party of Korea — the nation’s 20th presidential election on 9 March and the 8th local elections on 1 June. South Korea’s current political landscape is unprecedented in its modern history.
Pandemics, protests and policymaking in Central Asia
17 February 2022 Author: Kirill Nourzhanov, ANU In 2021, the five Central Asian republics celebrated 30 years of independence. They may not have fought for emancipation from the Soviet Union, but Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan have achieved genuine statehood and learned how to survive as sovereign nations. Their political and economic systems, while lacking in freedom, matured enough to safeguard against pressing existential threats.
Hefazat-e-Islam and the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in Bangladesh
16 February 2022 Author: Roshni Kapur, Singapore Islamic fundamentalism and violence is on the rise in Bangladesh. Anti-France protests, violent protests during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit and communal violence in Comilla all demonstrate the influence Islamist radicals have, particularly Hefazat-e-Islam. The rise of hardline Islamic forces poses a challenge to the Bangladeshi government on whether it will protect its secular principles or continue its patronage politics.
A precarious ceasefire in Myanmar needs international support to continue
15 February 2022 Author: MD Mufassir Rashid, Dhaka Since the military coup on 1 February 2021, Myanmar’s Rakhine State has remained relatively stable and long-standing ethnic divisions appear to be on a path towards improvement. The Arakan Army (AA) — a Rakhine-based ethnic armed organisation operating since 2009 alongside its political wing, the United League of Arakan — has emerged as one of Rakhine’s key political and military actors.
Japan’s new model of capitalism in an uncertain world
15 February 2022 Author: Shujiro Urata, Waseda University The year 2021 began with hope that the successful development of a new vaccine would relieve the world from the COVID-19 pandemic. But while vaccines were rapidly deployed in Europe and the United States, the Japanese government’s slow approval process delayed its rollout.
Recapping ASEAN’s year of pandemic recovery and political challenges
14 February 2022 Author: Kaewkamol Pitakdumrongkit, RSIS 2021 marked continued efforts by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to address the problems emerging from COVID-19 and pursue post-pandemic recovery. Some of the year’s deliverables were noteworthy, including the Strategic and Holistic Initiative to Link ASEAN Responses to Emergencies and Disasters (ASEAN SHIELD) announced in the Bandar Seri Begawan Declaration in June 2021.
India’s free pass on civil rights
14 February 2022 Author: Arun R Swamy, University of Guam For India, 2021 was a year of trauma and portent. Alongside the continuing COVID-19 crisis — despite an ostensibly successful vaccination drive — the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) anti-democratic tendencies intensified. A year-long protest by farmers eventually resulted in the government withdrawing a landmark bill to liberalise agricultural trade. State elections heralded the strength of regional parties.
Indonesia begins to look beyond Jokowi
14 February 2022 Author: Editorial Board, ANU It says a lot about Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo’s extraordinary mastery over Indonesian politics that year in, year out analyses of what’s driving domestic developments in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy all lead back to the priorities and interests of its president.
Presidential politics heats up in Indonesia
13 February 2022 Author: Greg Fealy, ANU The past year, the seventh year of Joko Widodo’s presidency, has been notable for two trends: the further entrenching of the president’s political position and the continuing reversal of democratic and human rights reforms. Jokowi is determined to avoid being a lame-duck president in his second term.
Civic rights for foreign residents sparks backlash in Japan
12 February 2022 Author: Yasuo Takao, Curtin University The number of foreign residents living in Japan has dramatically increased in the past decade, marking a change for a population traditionally perceived as ‘homogenous’. One local municipality’s debate on civic participation for its foreign residents recently sparked a nation-wide backlash from conservatives and nationalists.
Sri Lanka’s fertiliser sell out to China
12 February 2022 Author: Shakthi De Silva, Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies Sri Lanka teeters on the edge of a grim economic precipice, entering 2022 with foreign currency reserves sufficient only for a single month of imports. Domestic inflation rose to a decade-high record in 2021 following a surge in food prices triggered by import restrictions, a significant drop in the Sri Lankan rupee value and the government’s decision to print more money.
Prospects and challenges for Vietnam’s economy in 2022
11 February 2022 Author: David Dapice, Harvard University Vietnam was an economic star in 2020, as it managed to control the COVID-19 pandemic while maintaining one of the highest growth rates in the world. While GDP growth was only about 3 per cent, about half of its normal 6–7 per cent growth rate, most countries faced falling levels of output. But the government — perhaps confident that its test, track and quarantine measures could continue to control the virus — was slow in procuring vaccines.
Mining fractures land and community in Mongolia
11 February 2022 Author: Ariell Ahearn, University of Oxford With over 1000 licenses issued across the country, a diverse range of mineral extraction operations are transforming Mongolia’s rural cultural landscape. The Gobi region is crowded with both mega mines and smaller-scale operations. The Gobi also has excellent conditions for renewable energy and is poised to be a site for significant investment in this industry.
Will India become the world’s fastest growing large economy?
10 February 2022 Author: Suman Bery, Centre for Policy Research In late January, the IMF released its update on the outlook for the world economy. It downgraded its estimate for global growth in 2022 to 4.4 per cent from 4.9 per cent last October. Against this background, India was a striking outlier. It was not just the country with the highest anticipated growth in 2022, 9.0 per cent for India’s April 2022-March 2023 (FY23) financial year.
China and Russia position themselves for Laos’ fast-approaching post-LDC era
10 February 2022 Author: Kathryn Sweet, Canberra Despite closed international borders and rolling lockdowns due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic moved closer to its dreams of developmentalist modernity. A new five-year domestic political cycle was initiated, and international cooperation with old and new friends accompanied key development breakthroughs for Laos.
Malaysia’s big budget belies year of COVID-19 brutality
9 February 2022 Author: Shankaran Nambiar, Malaysian Institute of Economic Research Things were rough for the Malaysian economy the past year. The government’s response to the COVID-19 crisis was made within a narrow fiscal space, though Kuala Lumpur did make valiant efforts to minimise the impact of the pandemic, which saw high infections, deaths and a public health system under severe pressure.
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