The Separatist Conflict In Sri Lanka: Terrorism, Ethnicity, Political Economy
State Terrorism and Insurgencies in Sri Lanka
by Nirmal Singh*,
- Published in Journal of Advances and Scholarly Researches in Allied Education, E-ISSN: 2230-7540
Volume 1, Issue No. 1, Jan 2011, Pages 0 - 0 (0)
Published by: Ignited Minds Journals
ABSTRACT
Various non-governmental organizations and individuals have accused the Sri Lankan government of committing state terrorism. These allegations characterize much of the Sri Lankan government's handling of insurgent groups dating from 1956, including the civil war againstTamil militant groups and the state response to the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna insurrections, as state terrorism.
KEYWORD
separatist conflict, Sri Lanka, terrorism, ethnicity, political economy, government, state terrorism, insurgent groups, civil war, Tamil militant groups, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna insurrections
Introduction
Various non-governmental organizations and individuals have accused the Sri Lankan government of committing state terrorism. These allegations characterize much of the Sri Lankan government's handling of insurgent groups dating from 1956, including the civil war against Tamil militant groups and the state response to the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna insurrections, as state terrorism. Specific acts alleged include massacres of civilians, mass graves, torture unlawful incarceration and forced disappearances. The government has denied the allegations. In 1986 Stanley Jeyaraja Tambiah, an American Tamil social anthropologist at Harvard University specializing in studies of Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Tamils, as well as the anthropology of religion and politics, stated that the Sinhalese populace, the Tamil rebels and the Sri Lankan government armed forces were all engaged in "terrorism" during the Sri Lankan Civil War; he describes the latter as practicing "deadly terrorism and intimidation". Though all parties in the conflict have resorted to the use of terror tactics, in the scale, duration, and sheer numbers of victims, it is the Sri Lankan state that is most guilty of the massive use of terror. This was echoed by the Secretary of Movement for Development and Democratic Rights, a NGO that terrorism was used in the north as a political tool and the resultant state terrorism restricted their operation in the north. It further claimed that the state viewed killing as an essential tool. This according to Kumar Rupesinghe led to solidification of demand for separate state for minority Tamils called Tamil Eelam under conditions of state terrorism and genocida situations. The idea of an independent state for Tamils was originally articulated by S.J.V. Chelvanayagam in 1976. The author of State, Nation, and Ethnicity in Contemporary South Asia states that as a result of ethnic assault of Tamils, the Sri Lankan social democracy was tainted by State Terrorism. Dias Hewagama and Wiswa Warnapala claim that experience of State terrorism could not be erased from the mind of people from Jaffna and this is what prompted the UNP to attack Jaffna. Researcher, who provides a very thorough discussion of the civil conflict in Sri Lanka, relates the particular issues and perspectives of the contending groups to major conflicts occurring elsewhere in the world. Although the following categories are not utilized specifically by Researcher, this review considers four general principles that apply both to the Sri Lanka situation and to contemporary conflicts elsewhere. First, when competing groups claim the same land because both have occupied it “traditionally,” how far back in history is meaningful? As Researcher points out, both the Sri Lankan Tamils and the Sinhala (Sinhalese) claim ancient settlement on the island (although neither occupied the land as early as the aboriginal Veddahs). Before the seventeenth century concept of nationstates, various Tamil and Sinhala rulers governed shifting areas, which complicates identifying a “traditional homeland.” In addition to the controversy about “traditional” lands, the question about what populations “belong” to particular areas arises. During the colonial period Britain brought Tamils from India to work in the central highlands of Ceylon. In recent decades the question about the “true” citizenship of these “Indian” Tamils has been controversial Likewise, there is disagreement about whether recent settlers in newly irrigated areas are upsetting the voting patterns by different ethnic groups. A second issue concerns how contemporary self-determination is established. That is, what is the appropriate geographic scale for determining the area to be governed by the resident population? As the author explains, the majority (or even plurality) of ethnic residentschanges with geographic scale. In Sri Lanka as a whole, the Sinhala are the major ethnic group; at the provincial level, the Sri Lanka Tamils are the majority in the Northern Province; and at the next smaller areal division, the composition of population differs from district to district, especially in the Eastern Province. The resulting pattern of districts differentiated by a specified criterion, say, ethnicity, forms a complex mosaic of discontinuous areal units. In addition to different groups favoring one geographic scale over other, some political parties in Sri Lanka have shifted their positions about supporting or opposing a particular scale, such as occurred when district quotas were proposed. The selection of meaningful criteria for identifying groups is a third hotly disputed issue Governmental censuses have differentiated citizens on the basis of ethnicity, and in fact, many observers characterize the contemporary conflict as essentially an ethnic conflict between Tamils and Sinhala. Researcher presents overwhelming evidence that political interests of citizens are much more complex than merely ethnicity, and denning them as such is misleading Controversies arise from differences in language, religion and caste, socioeconomic status, and political positions. Each of these criteria affects the political stance of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE or Tamil Tigers) and the national government. According to Researcher, the Tamil language is inappropriate as the sole defining criterion for a forming secessionist state (Tamil Eelam) because, in addition to the Sri Lankan Tamils, the Indian Tamils and Muslim communities also speak that same language. Although Tamils are predominantly Hindus and most Sinhala are Buddhists, some of the leaders of the Tamil Tigers are Christians;furthermore, dualistic division omits Muslims. Closely related to religion is the role of caste, which has been a major factor in the political strategies for achieving Tamil Eelam. Researcher explains that high-caste Tamils often ignored the aspirations of the low-caste Tamils with the former sometimes holding political views closer to those of the high-caste Sinhala. In general, the effects of socioeconomic status permeate most of the country’s recent history. It has been primarily the elites within both the Tamil and Sinhala populations who maintained their dominantroles in the development of and reactions to the conflict. One of the greatest errors in oversimplifying the conflict results from overlooking the diversity of political perspectives within groups. Throughout the book, Researcher elucidates the complexity of groupings. This is most obvious in the dichotomy between so-called moderates and radicals Repeatedly during the decades of conflict in Sri Lanka, the moderates, who have sought a settlement through negotiation and nonviolent means, have been marginalized or eliminated. In fact, the LTTE has repeatedly destroyed other Tamil separatist organizations holding slightly different goals. Numerous attempts by one or more Sri Lankan and foreign governments (especially India and Norway) have been foiled by the LTTE, which has been intolerant of other Tamils who have been ready to accept agreements involving the devolution of political power. The last issue arising from Researcher’s application of the Sri Lankan conflict to others elsewhere considers the impact of war on human rights and international responsibility (i.e., the “Responsibility to Protect”). Does the United Nations have a right or obligation to override the sovereignty of states when genocide or other forms of extreme suppression occur? If so, how are “freedom fighters” differentiated from “terrorists”? In many cases, this is difficult to determine. In the case of Sri Lanka, is the LTTE a terrorist organization (as decreed by several countries) because it maintains an authoritarian rule over the area it controls and persecutes persons who do not agree with its agenda? In contrast, numerous international nongovernmenta organizations believe that the LTTE are fighting for the freedom to declare an independent country. If the latter applies, does it follow that ethnic cleansing is a legitimate goal, namely, that a Tamil Eelam should be a land for only Tamils, whereas the remaining part of Sri Lanka can be a pluralistic society? At the time this book was written, the latter is preferred as documented by election results (favoring devolution within a unitary state) and by residential preferences (i.e., with the majority of Tamils living outside the area claimed by the LTTE). Only a couple of aspects of this book detract slightly from its value. Although four maps accompany the text, the inclusion of one or more place-name maps would assist most readers in understanding some details. Second, where occasionally the tense shifts within a paragraph it is difficult to ascertain the timing of particular events. With almost 1,400 footnotes this is a very scholarly explanation of the conflict in Sri Lanka; furthermore, it relates this particular situation to insurrections in general.
Reference
Tambiah, Sri Lanka: Ethnic Fratricide and the Dismantling of Democracy, p. 116 Hattotuwa, From violence to peace: Terrorism and Human Rights in Sri Lanka, pp.11-13 Danieli, Yael, D. Brom, and Joe Sills,The trauma of terrorism: sharing knowledge and shared care, pp.216 "Child soldiers: Understanding the context". Daya Somasundaram. http://www.bmj.com/cgi/reprint/324/7348/1268.pdf. Retrieved 2008-01-17. ACHR, Sri Lanka: Disappearances and the Collapse of the Police System,ACHR, pp.34-42 Rupesinghe, Ethnic Conflict in South Asia: The Case of Sri Lanka and the Indian Peace- Keeping Force (IPKF), pp.337 "Sri Lanka: testimony to state terror". Race & Class (Institute of Race Relations) 26 (4): 71– 84. 1985. doi:10.1177/030639688502600405. "S.J.V.Chelvanayagam Q.C". Tamil Nation (Tamil Nation). 2006-11-15 http://www.tamilnation.org/hundredtamils/chelva.htm. Retrieved 2008-01-18. [dead link] Ishtiaq Ahmed, State, Nation, and Ethnicity in Contemporary South Asia, Continuum International Publishing Group, 1996, p. 55. ISBN 1855675781. W. A. Wiswa Warnapala, L. Dias Hewagama, Recent Politics in Sri Lanka: The Presidentia Election and the Referendum, Navrang (Original from the University of Michigan), 1983, p. 29. ASIN: B000II886W.
