24545536 Cultural Clash the Sinhalese Lion and Crouching Tamil Tiger in Perpetual Conflict

8/12/2019 24545536 Cultural Clash the Sinhalese Lion and Crouching Tamil Tiger in Perpetual Conflict

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/24545536-cultural-clash-the-sinhalese-lion-and-crouching-tamil-tiger-in-perpetual 1/11

Cultural Clash: The Sinhalese Lion and Crouching Tamil Tiger in Perpetual

Conflict

By Richard L. Dixon

The recently concluded war etween the Sinhalese ma!ority go"ernment of Sri Lan#a and the

Lieration Tigers of Tamil $elam %LTT$& led y the late 'elupillai Praha#aran %who was #illed y Sri Lan#an soldiers& was one of forceful rutality( mass human suffering( and the

displacement of o"er )**(*** Tamil refugees in the +orthern Part of Sri Lan#a. ,t played itself

out in the li"ing rooms around the world. The Sri Lan#an Ci"il -ar was one of the fiercestfought in the world that claimed o"er *(*** li"es in a /0 year period. 1n one hand you had a

Sinhalese go"ernment that su!ected the Tamil minority to one of the cruelest forms of racism(

torture( and ethnic cleansing that the world has e"er #nown. The Tamil2s were discriminated inemployment( housing( !os( and stripped of their language and culture. They were reduced to

second class ser"itude in all matters 3et on the other hand with the Tamil Tigers you had one of

the most ruthless and loodthirsty reel groups who utili4ed the tactics of suicide oming(#idnapping( assassination of high ran#ing go"ernment officials %such as Sri Lan#an President

Ranasinghe Premadasa in 566)( and former ,ndian Prime 7inister Ra!i" 8andhi in 5665&( the

targeting of innocent ci"ilians %the 9ranthalawa 7assacre( 9nuradhapura massacre( attan#udy

mos;ue massacre( and eithigollewa massacres&( and amushing of go"ernment troops andsoldiers. ,t is stated that the LTT$ also had estalished connections with other 7uslim terrorist

that were associated with the first attac# on the -orld Trade Center in 566). They engaged in

smuggling arms to the Talian in 9fghanistan( and hea"ily recruited child soldiers into theirran#s. <7ost child soldiers( oth oys and girls( are drawn from the poorest( least educated and

most marginali4ed social sectors. $specially at ris# are children with a disrupted family

ac#ground( refugee and internally displaced children( children li"ing in conflict 4ones andgarrison towns( children from a particular ethnic( racial or religious group( and former child

soldiers. The recruited children are used to fight( lay mines and explosi"es and as spies(

messengers( guards( scouts( coo#s( porters( ser"ants and for sexual purposes.=5 ,t was the scope

and le"el of these acti"ities y the Tamil Tigers that resulted in them eing placed on the list ofruthless terrorist organi4ations y the >nited +ations( $>( and the State Department.

The Sri Lan#an Ci"il -ar etween the Sinhalese ma!ority go"ernment and LTT$ is a textoo#

example of Samuel ?untington2s Clash of Ci"ili4ation and @ohn 7ueller2s Banality of $thnic

-ar analogy. <9 group of wellAarmed thugs and ullies encouraged y( and wor#ing underrough constraints set out y( official security ser"ices would arri"e or and together in a

community. Sometimes operating with local authorities( they would then ta#e control and

persecute memers of other ethnic groups( who would usually flee to areas protected y theirown ethnic ruffians( sometimes to !oin them in see#ing re"enge. Carni"als of oftenAdrun#en

looting( destruction( and "iolence would ta#e place( and othersAAguiltily or not so guiltilyAmight

!oin in. 8radually( howe"er( many of the people under the thugs aritrary and chaotic

1 Peters, Lilian. War is no Child’s Play: child Soldiers from Battlefield to Playgrounds. Geneva

Centre for the emocratic Control of !rmed "orces #C!"$, %ccasional Pa&er, '(,

)uly, *++, *.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberation_Tigers_of_Tamil_Eelam

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velupillai_Prabhakaran

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranasinghe_Premadasa

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rajiv_Gandhi

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aranthalawa_Massacre

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anuradhapura_massacre

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kattankudy_mosque_massacre



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kebithigollewa_massacre

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberation_Tigers_of_Tamil_Eelam

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velupillai_Prabhakaran

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranasinghe_Premadasa

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rajiv_Gandhi

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aranthalawa_Massacre

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anuradhapura_massacre



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kebithigollewa_massacre



protection( especially the more moderate ones and young men unwilling to e pressed into

military ser"ice would immigrate to safer places. ,n all this( nationalism was not so much the

impelling force as simply the characteristic around which the marauders happened to ha"earrayed themsel"es.=/

Sri Lan#a was a country that was di"ided into four separate distinct cultures( religions( and racesthat was on a spontaneous collision course of ethnic conflict. This conflict was directly and

indirectly influenced y outside actors such as the ,ndian Chinese go"ernment. <9ccording tothe C,9 Eact oo#( the ethnic( rea#down of Sri Lan#a was as follows( Sinhalese F).GH( Sri

Lan#an 7oors F./H( ,ndian Tamil I.H( Sri Lan#an Tamil ).6H( other *.0H( unspecified 5*H

%/**5 census pro"isional data&. Religiously the Sinhalese were primarily BuddhistJChristian(%6. 5H and ./H& the 7oors were 7uslim %F.H&( and the ,ndian Tamil and Sri Lan#an Tamil

were ?indu %F.5H&.=) ,n some ways( the ethnic and religious situation in Sri Lan#a was a mirror

image of the Bal#ani4ation that transpired in the now defunct 3ugosla"ia Repulic under theleadership of the deceased @oseph Tito. The ig difference was that there was no fatherland

concept or ideology that ounded the Sri Lan#ans under one national anner. <The ethnic

differentiations within the category KCeylonese2( of course( were not sustained only y politicalcompetition. Their foundational sources were %a& sets of cultural practices that( amidst

commonalities( implanted difference in oth explicit and insidiously powerful ta#en-for -granted

ways and %& widespread practices of endogamous marriage among the Sinhalese( Tamils and

7oors that were in turn ased on the propensity for Sinhalese and Tamil people to marry withintheir own caste with the caste identities nestling differentially within each ethnic grouping.=I

To fully understand the separatist tendencies of the Tamils as well as that of the Sri Lan#an

7oors one must go ac# to the history of Sri Lan#a as a former British Colony. Sri Lan#a was

originally an ancient #ingdom estalished y the Sinhalese in the th century BC. Later in the 5Icentury 9D( ,ndians from the sucontinent estalished a #ingdom in the Southern Region of the

island nation. During this era Sri Lan#a was #nown as the #ingdom of Ceylon and went througha cycle of colonial rulers starting with the Portuguese( Dutch( and finally the $nglish in 5F6.

>nder British rule( ethnic tendencies etween the Sinhalese and Tamils were played out for political ad"antages. The same tactics were utili4ed successfully in the British colonies of

7alaysia( 7auritius( ,ndia( and Singapore. ,n all instances( the British go"ernment rought in

cheap laor from either ,ndia or China. The British rought in thousands of Tamils to wor#administrati"e functions as well as the tea plantations. ,t wasn2t long after that the Sinhalese

ma!ority started a mo"ement for independence in Ceylon led y S - R D Bandaranaya#e which

resulted in a negotiation of independence in 56IG from the British 8o"ernment. 3et it ecameapparent from the start that the mo"ement for independence y the Sinhalese ma!ority was done

at the exclusion of the Tamil minority who at this time made up 5FH of the population. 1nce

Ceylon had gained its independence they initiated a proASinhalese platform in the newconstitution( passed laws to ma#e Buddhism the official state religion( and the implementation of

* ueller, )ohn. /he Banality of 0thnic War, nternational Security, 2ol. *, ssue 1, Summer,

*+++, 1.

3 C! World "act4oo5, Sri Lan5a, accessed on %cto4er *(, *++6, from:

htt&s:77888.cia.gov7li4rary7&u4lications7the98orld9fact4oo57geos7ce.html

;o4erts, ichael. S&lit !sunder: "our <ations in Sri Lan5a, .

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ce.html




the Sinhala Language only act. = This was soon followed y the KSinhala only2 Language 9ct

that made the Tamil spea#ing people stripped of their right to use their language in their !os( in

their courts( and in their communications with the State. The sense of alienation from the Statewas further intensified when Tamils were faced with discrimination in education and !os as

well.=0

Sri Lan#a2s peaceful transition failed ecause its legislati"e framewor# was in a -estminister

democratic strait!ac#et that did not ta#e into account the plurality of its ethnic and religious

minorities into a cooperati"e go"ernment framewor#. ,ndeed the -estphalian System ofgo"ernment from a western perspecti"e was totally inade;uate to handle the multitude of sects(

clans( religions( and races in the former colonial empires ha"e contriuted greatly to the ethnic

conflicts that ha"e flared up on the continents of 9frica and 9sia. $"en Samuel ?untington

referred to the failure of the -estphalian System as one of the primary causes of ethnic conflict.The former British Colonies of 7alaysia and Singapore unli#e their Sri Lan#an counterparts

reali4ed the shortcomings of the -estminister system and made concessions to accommodate

their ethnic and religious minorities. ,n the case of 7alaysia( the 7alay ma!ority were resentful

of the Chinese and ,ndian minorities who held significant economic power in the country andculminated in the 7ay566 riots which #illed hundreds. The 7alaysians sought to remedy the

situation y ringing the 7alay ma!ority in the mainstream with the passage of the +ationalDe"elopment Plan( Eirst 7alaysian Plan( and 'ision /*/* to incorporate all citi4ens into a

go"ernment of national unity.

The Sinhalese ma!ority on the other hand sought to capitali4e on its status y alienating the other

ethnic groups such as the Tamils. -hen the Tamil tried to protest the alleged cases of

discrimination and alienation that was perpetuated upon them y the Sinhalese ma!ority( theywere demoni4ed and were massacred y the Sinhalese population who were wiped up into fren4y

y the politicians. <,t is e"ident that the "iolence and ethnocentric policies of the Sinhala ruling

elites contriuted to the growth of Tamil nationalism in Sri Lan#a. Tamil moderate parties(such as the Eederal Party %EP& led y s#illful politicians such as S.@.'. Sel"anaya#am(

articulated frustration among common Tamil people into a Kdefensi"e nationalism2 with

peaceful protests. ?owe"er( Sinhalese collecti"e( competiti"e chau"inism responded"iolently to the Tamil moderatesM. Scholarly wor#s on the Sri Lan#a ethnic conflict suggest that

communal riots in 560G( 565( 56FI( 56FF and 56G) in which Tamils were #illed( maimed(

roed and rendered homeless were carefully designed y the Sinhala elites. This persistent pattern of "iolence set the stage for "iolent Tamil retaliation and efforts to secede=

The eatings and massacres of ethnic Tamils y their Sinhalese counterparts such as the

,nginiya#ala massacre( Tamil research conference massacre( urning of the @affna lirary( 56FFcommunal pogrom( and 560G pogrom were sa"age and inhuman. $"en those these atrocities

were committed y the Sinhalese ma!ority( there were moderates within the Tamil community

who were still committed for the continued process of attempting to integrate their communitiesinto the Sri Lan#an political process through constructi"e dialogue. Those efforts though were

<orth 0ast Secretariat on =uman ;ights #<0S%=;$, Lest We "orget, assacres of /amilis,

16>9*++1, #?ilinochchi, Sri Lan5a: Statistical Centre for <orth 0ast S<, *++@$, vii.

> Stavis, Ben, A mtiya, !.;.. 0thno9Political Conflict in Sri Lan5a. /he )ournal of /hird

World Studies, 2ol. *, <o. *, "all, *++(, (, 1+.



negated y a strong Sinhalese nationalist mo"ement that sought to ha"e a ha"e a mandated

affirmati"e action program at the expense of the Tamil people ecause at the time they occupied

high status positions in the ci"il ser"ice sector of the go"ernment and were well represented asstudents and instructors in the uni"ersity le"el.

<Erom the 56F*s the democratic political system and the territorial integrity of Sri Lan#a came underincreasing threat of growing political conflict concurrently in two facets. ,n 56F5( there emerged aninsurrection( organi4ed y the youth of the Sinhala community to capture state power. The Sinhala

community is the main ethnic group of the country accounting for nearly threeAfourth of the total population. The Sinhala community is concentrated largely in the Southern part of the country. The

militant organi4ation of the Sinhala youth( #nown as the @'P %@anatha 'imu#thi Peramuna( whichmeans People2s Lieration Eront&( after its first aorted attempt( dissol"ed temporally. The @'Parose again y the early 56G*s and made their second attempt launching an armed struggle since56G to capture state power. The largeAscale "iolence spread o"er the Southern parts of the country

and lasted for a period of four years till 56G6. But the @'P has continued to remain as an importantforce in the political scene.=F

The mo"ement manifested itself in the denial of uni"ersity of Tamil youth y the Sinhalesema!ority go"ernment. <,n 56F*( the go"ernment inter"ened in the uni"ersity admission process

So that( in effect( Tamil students had to otain higher mar#s than Sinhalese students for

admission. This came as a huge low to the Tamil youth who were strongly focused on gainingan education and entering professions due to the lac# of economic alternati"es in their stronghold

of @affna in the north( a terrain that was singularly inhospitale for most traditional farming( and

distant from the commercial centers of the country. Tamil students were particularly hard hit inmedicine and engineering where they had een performing well for decades.=G

The rampant discrimination led the frustrated Tamil youth to form a separate mo"ement for anindependent state. <This chipping away of the economic rights of the Tamils was clearly a factor

in the outrea# of Tamil militancy for the first time in 56FF.=6 The most militant of the Tamilmo"ement for independence was the LTT$ group. <The Lieration Tigers of Tamil $elam( led

y its charismatic founder and chief strategist 'elupillai Praha#aran( was estalished in 56Fand emerged as the strongest and est organi4ed of these groups.=5* ,n essence( the stage was set

for a full scale ci"il war which commenced in 56G). There were two opposing nationalist

mo"ements in the guise of the Sinhalese and Tamil student mo"ements that had no intention ofreconciliation or dialogue which had truly fragmented. Both groups throughout the course of the

ci"il war would acts of sa"agery( ararism( and rutality that would garner the condemnation of

the entire world community. There was no room for compromise and any indi"idual or groupthat tried would meet a ;uic# demise. This was especially true of the LTT$ Tigers whose forte

@ !4eyratne, Sirmal. 0conomic roots of Political Conflict, the Case of Sri Lan5a, e&artment

of 0conomics, niversity of Colom4o, >.

( %lla&ally, ee&a, . /he Politics of 0Dtremism in South !sia, Cam4ridge: Cam4ridge

niversity Press, *++(, 1>3.

6 4id, %lla&ally, 1>3.

1+ ?ronstadt, ?. !lan A Bruce 2aughn. Sri Lan5a: Bac5ground A .S. ;elations. Congressional

;esearch Service, )une , *++6, (.



was assassinating moderate Tamil politicians who tried to reach out to the %such as Thiagara!ah

7aheswaran from the >nited +ational Party >+P& Sinhalese ma!ority go"ernment.

1"er the years during the ci"il war( the Tamil Tigers was one of the most efficient para

re"olutionary organi4ations in the world. Contrary to what has een written aout 9l Naeda and

militant ,slamic groups( it was they who speciali4ed in suicide omings y de"ising the suicide elt to use in con!unction against Sri Lan#an go"ernment and military targets. They also

pioneered the use of women as suicide omers as well. <1"er the course of the conflict the

LTT$ waged an insurgent campaign against the Sri Lan#an state in the course of which theinsurgents carried out hundreds of suicide attac#s and omed pulic uildings( transportation

hus( Buddhist temples and other locations. ,n 566F( the LTT$ was designated a foreign terrorist

organi4ation y the >.S. Secretary of State( and is elie"ed to e the only terrorist group to ha"e

assassinated two world leaders President Ranasinghe Premadasa of Sri Lan#a in 566) andformer Prime 7inister Ra!i" 8andhi of ,ndia in 5665.=55

The Tamil Tigers also earned a reputation of eing oth loyal and ruthless when it came to

dealing with their own people. ,t is said that they re;uired an oath of loyalty as well as theirfollowers wearing "ials of cyanide capsules to e ta#en if they were captured y go"ernment

soldiers. These actions garnered a measure of respect from the Tamil population. ,n addition(they forcefully merged other Tamil insurgent groups under the LTT$ umrella. Their

ruthlessness was shown towards where they were #nown to use whole "illages as a human shield

against go"ernment forces. <,n desperation( the Tamil Tigers are using tens of thousands oflocals as human shields. The Sri Lan#an go"ernment declared a ceaseAfire and called on the

Tigers to release their hostages( ut unmannedAaerialA"ehicle "ideo footage shows the terrorists

holding masses of innocents at gunpoint( refusing them freedom.=5/

, had attriuted at the eginning of this paper that the go"ernments of ,ndia and China were

outside actors who played a ma!or role in the shaping and influencing of this conflict. Starting in

56GF ,ndia tried to ro#er a ceasefire etween the Sri Lan#an 8o"ernment and the Tamilseparatist. They also ought in an ,ndian Peace#eeping force to police the region. The

go"ernment of ,ndia had a "ested interest in the ,ndian Tamil people ecause they were

predominantly ?indu and saw an opportunity to extend their strategic influence within theregion. >nfortunately oth the Sinhalese 8o"ernment and the Tamil Tigers aandoned support

for the peace initiati"e y continuing attac#s on oth ci"ilian and military targets.

<Paradoxically( LTT$ dominance in the north and east was finally entrenched in the context of afailed peace initiati"e. ,n 56GF( ,ndia and Sri Lan#a signed an 9ccord designed to ring aout a

ceasefire and an end to the conflict. The 9ccord offered a degree of autonomy for Tamil ma!ority

areas in the +orth and $ast( ut not independence. 9n amendment %#nown as the 5)th9mendment& to the 56FG Constitution was passed that pro"ided for the estalishment of

Pro"incial Councils and specified a range of powers that would e de"ol"ed to them. 9n interim

!oint +orthA$ast Pro"incial Council was soon created in an effort to meet Tamil demands for thetwo regions to e administered as one. The merger was to e put to a referendum at the end of

11 .S. e&artment of State, ;e&ort to Congress on ncidents during the ;ecent Conflict in Sri

Lan5a, *++6, >.

1* Sri Lan5a =igh Commission on %tta8a, Canada, Essues A 2ie8sF, !&ril, *++3, 3.



the interim period. Tamil was also upgraded to an Kofficial language2. -hile it did not initially

oppose the 9ccord as a whole( the LTT$ re!ected the proposed autonomy arrangements. Erom

the other end of the political spectrum( it was !oined in opposition y a re"i"ed @'P( which aftera rief period of engagement with parliamentary politics( had aandoned them. The organisation

was anned again in 56G).=5)

The inter!ection of the ,ndian go"ernment into the conflict went adly for them as well with the

assassination of former Prime 7inister Ra!i" 8andhi and the amushing of the ,ndian

Peace#eeping Eorce %,PE& y the Tamil Tigers. The ,ndian go"ernment then initiated counterAinsurgency operations which pro"ed to e unpopular with the Tamil population within the region

ecause hundreds of ci"ilians were either #illed or wounded. <,n 5665( the LTT$ assassinated

Ra!i" 8andhi( the former Prime 7inister of ,ndia( who had authorised the sending to Sri Lan#a

of the ,PE. Since then( while mindful of sentiment in the south ,ndian state of Tamil +adu( the,ndian 8o"ernment( which prior to 56GF had at points displayed considerale sympathy

for its cause( has een "ery hostile to the LTT$. 7any ha"e argued since that the

assassination was a ma!or miscalculation y the Tigers. ,n 56G6 a second @'P insurrection ro#e

out( mainly triggered y "ociferous opposition to the presence of the ,PE on the island(although the social and economic discontent that had led to its first insurrection had also

deepened. 9t one point( the insurrection loo#ed as if it might succeed in capturing power. ,nresponse( many leftAwing Sinhalese acti"ists were targeted y go"ernment death s;uads and

ultraAnationalist groups. The role of the ,PE in the north and east freed up much of the Sri

Lan#an armed forces to comat the insurrection and y 5665 it had een loodily ;uelled.=5I

,n 56G6 the ,ndian 8o"ernment e"entually withdrew their peace#eeping forces from Sri Lan#a

and the status of the Ci"il -ar went from ad to worst. The ,ndian tried to mediate the conflict

from ehind the scenes role ut were ineffecti"e. ,t was during this time that the LTT$ gainedthe upper hand from the Sri Lan#an go"ernment forces in solidifying their gains in the captured

territory in their ;uest to estalish a separate Tamil autonomous region. 9nother attempt for

peace and ceasefire was made etween the years /**/A*) in 1slo( +orway etween the warring parties and the international community. <The 7emorandum of >nderstanding %7o>& that was

signed y the Sri Lan#an go"ernment and the Lieration Tigers of Tamil $elam %LTT$& with the

help of +orway2s mediation in Eeruary /**/ and the international donor conference in To#yo in@une /**) ha"e created new hopes for a peaceful settlement of the war in Sri Lan#a. 1n the

national le"el the elections etween 5666 and /**/ helped to reduce the fragmentation of the

political landscape. The cohaitation created for the first time an institutional framewor# in

which the two ma!or parties were forced to coAoperate and to share go"ernmental responsiility.9t the international le"el the mediating efforts of +orway since spring /***( the impacts of the

55 Septemer /**5 attac#s in the >.S.( and the financial engagement of the international

community at the To#yo conference contriuted to this optimism. These de"elopments seemedto ha"e opened a new window of opportunity for a durale peace to end the protracted conflict

etween the Singhalese ma!ority and the Tamil minority.=50

13 =ouse of Commons. War and Peace in Sri Lan5a, ;esearch +71, )une , *++6, 1*.

1 4id, =ouse of Commons, 1*.

1 Wagner, r. Christian. Sri Lan5a <e8 Chance for Peace German nstitute for nternational

and Security !ffairs, )anuary, *++, 3.



$"en with the added enthusiasm to mediate the conflict it was doomed to fail for se"eral reasons.

1. The disagreement that occurred etween the newly elected president %Chandri#a

umaratunga& and Prime 7inister %Ranil -ic#remesinghe& on which direction to mediate

the conflict. Prime -ic#eremeisnghe supported conciliatory tal#s with the Tamil Reels

while President umaratunga opposed them. ,t should e noted that Presidentumaratunga had lost "ision in one eye prior to her election from a Tamil Reel suicide

attac# which #illed / people. Due to this dispute etween President umaratunga and

Prime 7inister -ic#remesinghe( the parliament was dissol"ed and new elections werecalled. The Tamil faction "iewed this as a lac# of good faith on the part of the

go"ernment to settle the conflict. ,n addition( the terms of the 1slo accord as had een the

case with the 56GF ,ndian ro#ered accord called for new elections with the participationof the Tamil minority. The Sri Lan#an go"ernment failed to follow thru on their end.

*. The continued isolation of the Sri Lan#an 7uslim community who were left out of the process. Throughout this conflict( the Sri Lan#an 7uslim found themsel"es forced to ta#e

side and also ore the runt of ci"ilian casualties from oth the go"ernment and Tamil

forces. Since the independence of Sri Lan#a from British rule( the 7uslim communityha"e een marginali4ed and discriminated in terms of educational( economical( and

political opportunities. <To understand why the 7uslim has een marginali4ed from the

peace process and their #ey issues repeatedly ignored at the national le"el( it is necessaryto recogni4e the contriuting roles played y the ethnic Sinhala ma!orityAcontrolled Sri

Lan#an state( the ruthless Tamil separatist mo"ement( and the selfAinterested 7uslim

political elites.=5

3. 1pposition to the peace accord y the Sinhala nationalist parties such as the SLEP(@athi#e ?ele >rumaya %@?>&( and @anatha 'imu#thi Peramuna %@'P&. Both the SLEP and

@'P had a long history of antagoni4ing and disrupting mediation efforts to settle theongoing ci"il war etween the Sinhalese ma!ority and Tamil minority. ,t was they that

stirred up nationalistic tendencies among the Sinhalese ma!ority that resulted in the mass pogroms against the Tamil minorities and Sri Lan#an 7uslim 7oors in 560G and 56G).

Their opposition to the 1slo 9ccord split the Sinhalese ma!ority in pro treaty and antiA

treaty camps.

-ith the collapse of the tal#s( the war too# a turn in fa"or of the Sri Lan#an military starting

with the election of 7ahinda Ra!apa#se as President in /**0. President Ra!apa#se opposedthe Peace Process of /**/ ecause he elie"ed it ga"e the LTT$ the upper hand and was

dedicated to smashing the Tamil Tigers as oth a political and military entity. President

Ra!apa#se united the Sinhalese ma!ority in support of this goal y forming an alliance withthe notorious @'P who too were opposed to the peace process. The military was completelyrearmed and refinanced from money from the Peoples Repulic of China. ,n fact( the Sri

Lan#an go"ernment formed an agreement of understanding in oth diplomatic and trade

relations with the Chinese. <China and Sri Lan#a issued a @oint Communi;ue in Colomo

1> cGilvray, ennis B., A ira5 ;aheem. uslin Pers&ectives on the Sri Lan5an Conflict.

0ast9West Center, Policy Studies '1, *++@, *.



Saturday at the end of Premier -en @iaaos official "isit. Both sides declared that( as 9sian

neighors with a long tradition of friendship( ased on the Ei"e Principles for Peaceful

Coexistence( China and Sri Lan#a will estalish and de"elop an allAround cooperati"e partnership featuring sincere mutual support and e"erlasting friendship( said the

communi;uO. Eollowing are a series of agreements and memorandums of understanding

signed during premier -ens "isit in the !oint communi;uO: 9greement on the EurtherDe"elopment of Bilateral $conomic and Trade Relationship etween the 8o"ernment of the

Peoples Repulic of China and the 8o"ernment of the Democratic Socialist Repulic of Sri

Lan#a.=5F

The Chinese and Sri Lan#an 9lliance was ideal for se"eral reasons:

1. Both the Chinese and Sri Lan#an go"ernments had similar ideologies in terms ofsocialism. Sri Lan#a was one of the first Southeastern nations to estalish a social welfare

safety net for its people in ad"ancing free healthcare and education. The Sri Lan#an

go"ernment has also adopted a strategy of estalishing a freeAmar#et economy within a

socialist framewor# !ust as the Chinese ha"e done.

*. The diplomatic and trade relationships with Sri Lan#a y China( continued its longstanding policy of trading with go"ernments with less than impressi"e human rights

records without trying to in"ol"e itself in that country2s domestic affairs. +umerous

human rights organi4ations( the >nited States( and the $> ha"e een highly critical ofChina in this regard especially it comes to its relationship with Sudan. ?owe"er( the

Chinese pro"ed instrumental in thwarting efforts y the >+ Security Council to condemn

the Sri Lan#an go"ernment2s ma!or military offensi"e to crush the Tamil Tigers for good.

3. The Chinese "iewed the island of Sri Lan#a from a strategic perspecti"e in estalishing afoothold in the ,ndian 1cean to guard its trade routes from the 8ulf of 1man to the

mainland through K9 String of Pearls2 strategy y uilding na"al ports in Pa#istan(7yanmar( Bangladesh( Sri Lan#a( and the Strait of 7alacca. <China’s develo&mentof these strategic geo&olitical H&earls’ has 4een nonconfrontational,8ith no evidence of im&erial or neocolonial am4ition. /he develo&mentof the HString of Pearls’ may not, in fact, 4e a strategy eD&licitly guided4y China’s central government. ;ather, it may 4e a convenient la4ela&&lied 4y some in the nited States to descri4e an element of China’sforeign &olicy. Washington’s &erce&tion of China’s de facto strategymay not 4e a vie8 shared in BeiIing, 4ut the fact remains thateconomic 4enefits and di&lomatic rhetoric have 4een an enticementfor countries to facilitate China’s strategic am4itions in the region.F1(

1@ Peo&les aily. China, Sri Lan5a issue )oint CommuniJue to S&ecify Coo&eration in !ll

!reas. !&ril 1+, *++. !ccessed on %cto4er 31, *++6 from:

htt&:77enlish.&eo&le.com.cn7*+++71+7eng*+++1+K1(+*6+.html.

1( Pehrson, Christo&her ). Strings of Pearls: eeting the Challenge of China’s ;ising Po8er

across the !sian Littoral. Strategic Studies nstitute, )uly, *++>, 39.

http://enlish.people.com.cn/200504/10/eng20050410_180290.html

http://enlish.people.com.cn/200504/10/eng20050410_180290.html



ndeed China s&ent over one 4illion dollars in the 4uilding of a maIor naval&ort on the island of Sri Lan#a in the fishing "illage of ?amantota. Sri Lan#a ser"es as the

"ital lin# in their geoAstrategy of ecoming a ma!or +a"al Power within the region and around

the world.

Now that they had money, weapons, and technical advisors from the Chinese Military, the

Sri Lankan government went about the task of destroying the Tamil separatist

movement with brute force and superior firepower. The howls of human rights

abuses and atrocities by the international community fail on deaf ears within the Sri

Lankan leadership. The doctrine of the responsibility to protect as advocated by the

nited Nations failed to materiali!e because of the diversionary tactics of the

Chinese during Security Council proceedings and the reali!ation by the

international community to inter"ect itself in the Sri Lankan Civil #ar, would result

in a $uagmire worst than %fghanistan. &y the late spring of '(() the territory that

the Tamil Tigers had captured in earlier military successes was reduced to a *' mile

parcel where +((,((( refugees were caught between the advancing Sri Lankan%rmy and the rapidly retreating Tamil rebels who continually used them as human

shields. There were eye witness accounts of the government forces deliberately

bombarding hospitals with critically wounded noncombatants because of the

suspicion that Tamil rebels were being harbored in the camps. undreds of civilians

were killed in similar cross fires inside Tamil territory. %s the Sri Lankan %rmy

advanced closer, the Tamil rebel leader 'elupillai Praha#aran e-horted his warriors

to fight to the last man or woman and not to dishonor themselves by being captured.

e also vowed to commit suicide by taking the "ial of cyanide capsules that hung

around his neck. n the end though, it was the Sri Lankan %rmy who ended the life

of one of the most notorious, vicious, and charismatic rebel leaders since Che

8ue"ara or 3asser 9rafat of the PL1.

1n 7ay 56 /**6( Sri Lan#an President 7ahinda Ra!apa#sa declared an end to the war and a

"ictory for all the Sri Lan#an citi4ens. 1r was it Sri Lan#an faced the daunting tas# of

reintegrating hundred of thousands of ,DP citi4ens who were stuffed into refugee camps that

were lac#ing in water( food( sanitation( and were incuators for disease such as dysentery. Thego"ernment had to decide the est approach to engage a disillusioned Tamil as well as a

disgruntled 7uslim minority who themsel"es were ha"ing rumlings of nationalistic tendencies.

,t also has to deal with the nationalistic hardcore ideologies of the SLEP( @athi#e ?ele >rumaya%@?>&( and @anatha 'imu#thi Peramuna %@'P& which does not allow for any dialogue etween

the Tamil and 7uslim communities and was a contriuting factor to the e"ents that led to the

Ci"il -ar in the first place. ,f Sri Lan#a is to achie"e peace it must in"ol"e the internationalcommunity to ro#er a peace with all parties in"ol"ed as e;ual partners and the tolerance of

differing cultures( races( and religions.

-hen the British granted Ceylon independence in 56IG( it was the crown !ewel of its colonialempire in Southeast 9sia ecause it had de"eloped a strong democratic model and tolerance for

all citi4ens. <Thus( come independence( Ceylon had( y de"elopingAcountry standards( a well

de"eloped infrastructure( an efficient pulic administration and !udiciary( and a democratic

http://www.time.com/time/time100/heroes/profile/guevara01.html






-estminsterAtype political system. >nli#e ,ndia( there was a peaceful hando"er of power in

stale political conditions. ,n addition to a prospering plantation economy( there were significant

achie"ements in health and education. The literacy rate( for example( was the highest in 9siaoutside @apan and the Philippines. The one lac# spot in the eyes of de"elopment economists at

the time was the lac# of industrialisation.=56

7any had expected oth Singapore and 7alaysia to disintegrate into sectarian fighting ut yet it

was the Sri Lan#ans who went down that path ecause of nationalism( intolerance( and an

unwillingness to engage in constructi"e dialogue and the implementation of policies tosuccessfully integrate their marginali4ed minorities as the Singaporeans and 7alaysians ha"e

successfully done. Sri Lan#a has the opportunity to start on a clean slate to rectify past

disagreements( reintegrate its Tamil and 7uslim refugees( guarantee the security of its minority

community( and to reuild its warAtorn country through foreign in"estments and aid y pro"idingessential ser"ices such as water( healthcare( power( sanitation( and permanent housing. Current

Sri Lan#an President 7ahinda Ra!apa#sa has declared that the top goal in the healing of the rift

that has tragically di"ided his country. The world will now wait to see if his actions will match

his rhetoric.

References

1. Lilian Peters( <-ar is no Child2s Play: Child Soldiers from Battlefield to Playgrounds(=

8ene"a Centre for the Democratic Control of 9rmed Eorces %DC9E&( 1ccasional Paper(QG %@uly /**0&( /.

*. @ohn 7ueller( <The Banality of $thnic -ar(= ,nternational Security( 'ol. /0( ,ssue 5

%Summer /***&( 5.

3. C,9 -orld Eactoo#( <Sri Lan#a.= 9ccessed on 1ctoer /G( /**6 from:

https:JJwww.cia.go"JliraryJpulicationsJtheAworldAfactoo#JgeosJce.html

. 7ichael Roerts( Split 9sunder: Eour +ations in Sri Lan#a( I.

. +orth $ast Secretariat on ?uman Rights %+$S1?R&( Lest -e Eorget( 7assacres ofTamilis( 560A/**5 %ilinochchi( Sri Lan#a: Statistical Centre for +orth $ast S+( /**F&(

"ii.

16 Sally, ;aeen. Sri Lan5a: the Political 0conomy of "ailure. Pa&er &resented at the

conference on Glo4aliation and 0conomic Success: Policy %&tions for !frica, Cairo.

<ovem4er 1391, *++>, 3.





>. 9.R.7. ,mtiya4 Ben Sta"is( <$thnoAPolitical Conflict in Sri Lan#a(= The @ournal of

Third -orld Studies( 'ol. /0( +o. / %Eall /**G&( G 5*.

@. Sirmal 9eyratne( <$conomic roots of Political Conflict( the Case of Sri Lan#a=(

Department of $conomics( >ni"ersity of Colomo( .

G. Deepa 7. 1llapally( The Politics of $xtremism in South 9sia %Camridge: Camridge

>ni"ersity Press( /**G&( 5).

6. ,id.( 5).

5*. . 9lan ronstadt Bruce 'aughn( <Sri Lan#a: Bac#ground >.S. Relations(=

Congressional Research Ser"ice %@une I( /**6&( G.

11.>.S. Department of State( <Report to Congress on ,ncidents during the Recent Conflict in

Sri Lan#a=( %/**6&( .

1*.Sri Lan#a ?igh Commission on 1ttawa( Canada( <,ssues 'iews(= 9pril /**)( ).

5). ?ouse of Commons( <-ar and Peace in Sri Lan#a(= Research *0J05( @une 0( /**6( 5/.

1.,id. 5/.

1.Dr. Christian -agner( <Sri Lan#aAa +ew Chance for Peace= 8erman ,nstitute for

,nternational and Security 9ffairs %@anuary /**I&( ).

5. 7c8il"ray( Dennis B.( 7ira# Raheem. 7uslin Perspecti"es on the Sri Lan#an

Conflict. $astA-est Center( Policy Studies QI5( /**F( /.

[email protected] Daily( <China( Sri Lan#a issue @oint Communi;ue to Specify Cooperation in 9ll

9reas(= 9pril 5*( /**0( 9ccessed on 1ctoer )5( /**6 from:

http:JJenglish.people.com.cnJ/**0*IJ5*Jeng/**0*I5*5G*/6*.html

1(.Christopher @. Pehrson( <Strings of Pearls: 7eeting the Challenge of China2s Rising

Power across the 9sian Littoral(= Strategic Studies ,nstitute %@uly /**&( )AI.

56. Ra4een Sally( <Sri Lan#a: the Political $conomy of Eailure= %paper presented at the

conference on 8loali4ation and $conomic Success: Policy 1ptions for 9frica( Cairo(

+o"emer 5)A5I( /**&( ).

http://english.people.com.cn/200504/10/eng20050410_180290.html

http://english.people.com.cn/200504/10/eng20050410_180290.html

Documents

24545536 Cultural Clash the Sinhalese Lion and Crouching Tamil Tiger in Perpetual Conflict