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However, the beginnings of terrorism in Sri Lanka are also inextricably entwined with the activities of the State. In the 30 years from the mid-1940s, successive governments took measures to reduce the number of Tamils in the professions and the public sector. These measures interacted in diverse and complex ways with a potent Sinhala Buddhist exclusivist which gradually became the animating ideology of the Sri Lankan state. Particularly among the arriviste, lower caste Sinhalese, the spread of anti-Tamil chauvinism was soon perceived as a promising means of increasing economic opportunity. As time passed, the electoral promise of pandering to this chauvinism tempted even the most cosmopolitan of Sinhalese politicians.
Arguably, the most adverse legislation for Tamils came from the language policy of S.W.R.D Bandaranaike’s government. The introduction of the 1956 ‘Sinhala Only’ Act, which replaced English with Sinhala as the language of official government business, clearly disadvantaged large numbers of Tamils. Its effect was compounded by widespread protests in Tamil areas in which school principals would not allow the teaching of Sinhala while school children refused to study the language.
The final straw for Tamils, however, was the introduction in the early 1970s of communal quotas for university entrance. This led to the exclusion of merit-worthy Tamil students and it was this that set the ethnic powder keg alight. With 'standardization', it became clear that the Tamils had lost the education and employment opportunities which had conditioned their commitment to a unitary Ceylon in the first place. Large numbers of young Tamils came to the conclusion that their socio-economic aspirations could only be fulfilled within a separate Tamil state.
The bloody terrorism that has ravaged Sri Lanka since 1983 is fuelled by the refusal of many Tamils to operate within a state system which denies them political power, employment and educational opportunities whilst engendering socio-economic disparity.
Distinction, however, has to be made between the LTTE’s terrorism and the aspirations of the Tamil peoples. The desire of the majority of Tamil peoples is to live with dignity and equality within a united Sri Lanka. The LTTE on the other hand believes a state of Eelam will best guarantee the equality and dignity of Tamils in the North-East. While the terrorism of the LTTE against the state is symptomatic of the chutzpah of the Sri Lankan state, which for decades ignored or undermined the aspirations of the Tamil people, it cannot be equated with the aspirations of the Tamil peoples, who whilst recognizing the primacy of the LTTE in the North-East, do not support its modus operandi by rote.
Entwined with the political ideology and communitarian hagiography in Sri Lanka, is the problem of Buddhism and its relations with the State. While Buddhist orthodoxy tends to promote the renunciation of all worldly concerns, there remains significant theological latitude for individual monks to engage in political activity which aims to reform society ‘for the good’. Since independence, Sri Lankan Buddhist leaders have been active in the political arena whenever they felt it appropriate, particularly on issues relating to the pre-eminence of the Buddhist faith and the territorial integrity of Sri Lanka.
On these issues, and others such as language, the Buddhist clergy have exerted a particularly powerful influence in Sri Lankan political life. In 1951, resolutions of the All Ceylon Buddhist Congress to the Prime Minister included a statement that ‘the ... government is legally and morally bound to protect and maintain Buddhism and Buddhist institutions’. It also demanded the restoration of Buddhism to ‘the paramount position of prestige which rightfully belongs to it’. Since independence, all governments have jockeyed for the favor of Sinhala Buddhists.
It must be remembered, however, that Sri Lankan Buddhists strongly believe that they have a duty to protect and uphold their faith in Sri Lanka. From the tinnitus of political leaders who, in the name of preserving the hegemony of Buddhism in Sri Lanka have deferred to the Sangha and much as they have manipulated them, to the attitude of the Buddhist clergy, the primacy given to Buddhism has proved inimical to the interests and aspirations of Tamils in Sri Lanka. This Sinhala-Buddhist mentality, which has informed and shaped post-independence politics in Sri Lanka, has engendered intolerance in polity and society and carries a large burden of responsibility for the current ethno-politic conflict.
Governance, Democracy and Terrorism
There are few exceptions to the general assumption that democratic governance is the single most appropriate cornerstone upon which to build a system of conflict prevention or resolution. This is based upon the assumption that democracy is a system by which conflicts in a society are allowed to formulate, find expression and be managed in a sustainable way, via institutional outlets such as political parties and representative parliaments, rather than being suppressed or ignored.
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Sanjana
Sanjana Hattotuwa is a Rotary World Peace Scholar presently pursuing a Masters in International Studies from the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. The views expressed here are his own. He can be contacted at hatt@wow.lk.
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Comments
Permission to meet you online Esther Cheong | Nov 22nd, 2007
Dear Sir
We are studying about Sri Lanka in our school in Singapore. Can we talk to you online on Friday, 0930 on TAKINGITGLOBAL?
Permission to meet you online Esther Cheong | Nov 22nd, 2007
Dear Sir
We are studying about Sri Lanka in our school in Singapore. Can we talk to you online on Friday, 0930 on TAKINGITGLOBAL?
There is much more to this issue... Kermi Liya | Nov 7th, 2008
Hello Sanjana, I really enjoyed reading your article. It was full of information and very deep academic understanding.
However I beg to differ on the case of "racism" on the Aryan race concept. In Sri Lanka, it is not the Buddhists and the Tamils who are causing tension and destroying the peace-it is the Guerrillas and their movement to destroy the country.
I have seen both Tamil and Sinhalese people living in bad conditions, and from my perspective I disagree that it is the "racial divide" between them that is the root of the problem. Many Tamil speak Sinhalese, and several Sinhalese people speak Tamil. Also, the two "races" or the Sri Lankans share their land and respect each others' religions, and cultures, doing their utmost to avoid (more) aggravation and hatred, as caused by the Guerillas.
It is those vile Guerillas, whose organization ACTUALLY consists of corrupted people who are either "Sinhalese and Tamil" (which does NOT matter since they are inhuman anyways) that cause the violence. They abduct children from families, force them to fight and kill, terrorize communities, break apart the already halting economy-it is these Guerillas, who are so devoted to rule Sri Lanka that are destroying the homes of both Sinhalese and Tamil people, regardless of their "race".
What the British did when they came to Sri Lanka-it is such a shame that no one knows the destruction they have caused in the societies of past colonized countries. It is the Guerrilla's fault that they are complete psychologically unstable serial killers, but what the British did is unmistakably and sinfully, deeply harmful.
I only hope that the people will stop going against each other and trust their unity and ambivalence towards eliminating the corrupt government and horrid guerrillas.
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