1. Sri Lanka: Contesting Identities, Conflict and Democracy Harinda Vidanage PhD

2. The Country, The People Island of south eastern shores of India, 800km north of the Equator. AREA 65,525 square km. Coastline 1,340 km POPULATION Sri Lanka has a population of 20 million of whom the majority are Sinhalese (74%). Other ethnic groups are made up of Sri Lankan Tamils (18%), Indian Tamils, Moors (7%), Burghers (of Portuguese & Dutch descent), Malay and Vedda (1%). Although a multi-religious country, Buddhists constitute the majority RELIGION Buddhist (70%), Hindu (15%), Christian (8%), Muslim (7%) Sri Lanka's literacy rate of 88.6% is one of the highest in Asia.

3. Pre Colonial Sri Lanka The Vijayan Myth and Aryan Descent The Buddhist Influence (Theravada Sect) Establishment of Anuradhapura, first largest Settlement Chola and Pandyan Invasion, Tamil settlements Rise and fall of Sinhala Kingdom Kingdoms in Sri Lanka prior to colonial occupation were Kotte, Kandy and Jaffna

4. Map

5. Colonial Shaping “Colonialism touched Ceylon and its peoples in an uneven fashion. Only in the Western and South Western regions of Ceylon had there been early signs announcing the bourgeoning of Modernity” (Wickramasinghe 2006:6) Sri Lanka was a complicated Matrix of racial and religious identities prior to the colonial shaping Ex: Upcountry Sinhala, Low Country Sinhala, Jaffna Tamils, Eastern Tamils, Moors, Malayas, Arabs, Indians

6. Colonialism Three waves of colonial influence The Portuguese 1505 -1658 ( trade, religion) The Dutch 1658 – 1796 The English1796 – 1948 / (1972)

7. Political Reforms and Social Implications under British rule Political reforms based on principles of liberalism and representation 1833 – 1924 Legislative Council and limited representation 1931 Donoughmore Commission reforms 1947 Soulbury Reforms (Sri Lanka Independence 4 February 1948) These political reforms re-cast the polity where modern political identities were born and modern identities of nation, race were solidified.

8. Post Independence Sri Lanka 1948 – 1970 ( Before the Republic) The Post Independence State saw the Sinhala Domination of political system State policy on expansion of Sinhala settlements Rise of popular nationalism based on Sinhala Supremacy (1956) Exclusivist Language Policy, education Policy Political Isolation of Tamil democratic parties, leading to Tamil unrest

9. 1972 - 2012 1972 Republic constitution (Socialist Democratic) 1977 2 nd Republic constitution (Executive Presidency) In Sri Lanka the creation of a plural democracy in which the various communities can live with dignity and justice must depend on a supreme constitution which upholds values and principles and acts as a bulwark against majoritarianism (Edirisinha 1999) Constitutional drawbacks,Priority to Buddhism, powerful executive, inability to address the values of pluralism. (Thiruchelvam 1999)

10. Political Parties UNP : United National Party SLFP Sri Lanka Freedom Party (currently leading ruling coalition) JVP (PLF) People’s Liberation front, led two Marxist uprising among the Southern Sinhale communities in 1971 and 1989 JHU (Sinhala Right Wing party, member of the ruling coalition TNA (Tamil National Alliance)

11. Sinhala Nationalism State policies and institutional Sinhala hegemony supplemented by entrenching Sinhala Buddhist identity Buddhism and Political power of clergy Merging Buddhism with Sinhalese ethnicity making the category superior, Buddhism and patriotism loyalty to country religion was equated

12. Linguistic nationalism and state formation Neil DeVotta (2004) locates the conflict roots in the context of Sri Lanka’s transition in early 1950’s from a traditional to a modern society. He claims that the Sinhala language was used as a political tool and a policy to empower and unite the Sinhala communities polarizing Sinhala and Tamil relationships. DeVotta claims: the ‘Sinhala only’ movement led to the formation of an ethnocracy and ‘ethnic outbidding’, which led to the marginalization of the Tamil minority and undermined Tamils’ confidence in state institutions. (Vidanage 2009)

13. Religious nationalism Buddhism and its ability to bring out the revival of the Sinhala as a race was an ideal symbolic tool for politicians since 1931, used to address a Sri Lankan society riddled with caste, class, regional matrix (1990: 20). This is the key reason why even now the arguments of Sinhala majoritarianism still center on the necessity to protect Buddhism and the Sinhala people.

14. Tamil Nationalism Concept of ‘self determination’ gains broader political consensus among Tamil political elites as a reaction to Sinhala nationalism 1976 Vadukkodai resolution (Tamil nationhood, Tamil eelam/ (Tamil nation) Institutional decay, facilitated by linguistic nationalism mobilized the Tamils for the ethnic conflict (Devotta 2004) Mainstream politics and Militancy 1977 election TULF won 17 seats in parliament 1983 riots and 6 th amendment to the constitution

15. Tamil Nadu factor

16. Majority/ Minority complex Adding to the feeling of the that the majority Buddhist Sinhalese have of being perennially under siege by the more entrepreneurial and dynamic minority –Hindu Tamils is the feeling of religious oppression sustained under the European colonial powers, beginning with Christian Portugal, and continuing through the mid twentieth century with the Dutch and British (Kaplan 2010) As a result, like the Serbs, in the former Yugoslavia and the Shiites in Iran, the Sinhalese are a demographic majority with a dangerous minority complexity of persecution. (Kaplan 2010) The history of Tamil invasions against the only homeland that the Sinhalese possess is not just the stuff of ancient history, but a living reality reinforced by the Tamil terrorism of the present era.

17. Rise of Tamil Militancy 1970– 1976 Formation of radical Tamil political organizations. 1972 LTTE formed by Velupillai Prabhakaran Political/organized Violence against Tamils (1977, 1978, 1979) 1980 – 1983 Tamil radical organizations became overtly militant and random confrontations 1983 (July) Ambush of Sri Lankan Soldiers and 1983 Ethnic riots.

18. LTTE Trivia One of the most ruthless Guerrilla organization in the global context. Modernised the application of suicide warfare Ran a de facto regime in North of Sri Lanka till end 2008 Has three main military wings (Ground, Naval and Air units) Specialised units including Black Tigers, Black Sea Tigers, Child Soldiers, Women only special operations units. (350 suicide attacks 1/3 females) International operation networks (Diaspora – Global networks)

19. In 1976 the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was formed by Velupillai Prabhakaran, the LTTE’s precursor was the organization named as Tamil New Tigers formed in 1972. State relations with minorities worsened throughout the 1980s and the Northern Province became a virtually militarized zone. In a short span of time during the 80’s, the LTTE (Tamil Tigers) gained the upper hand among the militant organizations, after a series of bloody turf wars and internal feuds in which they successfully eliminated rivals and emerged as the powerhouse of the Tamil militancy movement. LTTE claims to be the sole representatives of Tamil people in Sri Lanka and achieve separate Tamil homeland called ‘ Tamil eelam’.

22. Eelam War I (1983 – 1987) 1983 Ambush and killing of 13 soldiers 1984, 1985 civilian massacres Purging of dissent 1986 LTTE crack down on TELO and PLOTE First suicide attack July 1987 Operation Liberation ( May – June 1987) and Indian Intervention

23. 1987 Indo Lanka accord Indian intervention (political and military) Establishment of provincial councils Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to Patrol North and East Premadasa Factor (1989) and the withdrawal of the IPKF

24. Eelam War II (1990 – 1994) Massacre of Unarmed policemen Eviction of Muslims from the North Massacre of Muslim villagers in 1991 Rajive Gandhi assassination (May 1991) Killing of President Premadasa 1993

25. Eelam War III (1995 – 2001) April 1995 Naval battle, Gunboats sunk Air force and civilian airline downed Attack on Mullativu garrison ‘unceasing waves’ July 1996 Civilian massacres 1995, 1999 Assault of Elephant Pass Garrison 2000

26. The mid 1990s to the early 2000’s saw the LTTE performing the role of a state as they began regulating and controlling the resources and population of the land under their control. They viewed these methods as tools for effective governance. These included establishing a central information collection agency thus enabling them to implement a successful tax regime.

27. Eelam War IV LTTE split in 2004 Mavil Aru incident July 26, 2006 March 2007 Air raids LTTE attacks on eastern targets Government resumed full-scale offensive

28. Truce attempts 1994 New Government, New President and a New Peace offer. 1995 Devolution Package 2001 Peace effort, Signing of the Cease Fire Agreement (CFA) 2004 LTTE split between Eastern and Northern Command. 2004 Boxing day Tsunami and peace effort

29. India factor Internal politics 80’s RAW training Tamil militants Post 1977 Sri Lankan foreign Policy 1987 Indian intervention and IPKF 1991 Rajiv Gandhi assassination and Indian position on LTTE alters radically Since 1991 India officially stood for territorial integrity in Sri Lanka.

30. The conflict entered a new phase with heightened confrontation between the Sri Lanka forces and the LTTE since 2006. Uyangoda (2007) views this as an endemic feature of the conflict where it has become self sustained and reproductive. He focuses on the view of power between the state and the LTTE where the LTTE is war-making in essence as a state making process. He makes this argument focusing on the approach to the conflict by the new president of Sri Lanka, Mahinda Rajapaksa who came to power in 2005. Rajapaksa has given total backing for an all out military push to dislodge the LTTE from power. Uyangoda argues, this is a process of viewing the war as, ‘a space in which the two sides actually negotiate their competing state formation goals’ (2007: 10).

31. Military solution Competing state formation projects (Uyangoda 2005) LTTE grows beyond its original objective LTTE depends on perpetuation of violence as political wing of the group remains weak State building under a militarized hierarchy Change of international power structures, Chinese, Russian influence.

32. Geo Political dimension Partly because of Chinese strategic interest concerns, Sri Lanka was able to win a war while rejecting the West. And though the defeat of a group like the Tamil Tigers is certainly something to be welcomed, it was achieved in a manner that demonstrates how the rise of China in Asia and Africa carries with it troubling repercussions for the states and regimes affected. As we have seen Chinese military aid does not come with lectures about human rights the way the West does. China does not interfere in its own. Chinese foreign policy, without being in any way extreme or bellicose, nevertheless represents the bleakest form of realism. While we in the west scan the developing world for moral purity, decrying corruption in backward societies, the Chinese are content with stability no matter how illegitimately conceived. (Kaplan 2010)