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How bad was it?
12 May 2009 - As many as 1,000 civilians may have been killed in two days of shelling that marked some of the worst violence in Sri Lanka
29 May 2009 - More than 20,000 civilians were killed in the final months of Sri Lanka's civil war
13 May 2009 - more than 50 people died when two shells hit the zone's main hospital compound.
5 July 2009 - A Tamil Tiger grabbed the gun of a Sri Lankan soldier conducting a search of a boat and shot three troops, killing one
People of Sri Lanka
The Majority - Sinhalese•speak Sinhalese •Buddhists
The Minority- Tamils•speak Tamil •Hindus
Sri Lankan Tamils – descendents of Tamil migrants, lived in Sri Lanka since 300 BCE
Indian Tamils – came later, brought in by
British rulers to work in tea plantations
Racial Composition in Sri Lanka
0%20%40%60%80%
Sinhalese SriLankanTamils
IndianTamils
SriLankan
Moor
Others
Under the British Colonial Rule before 1948
• Tamil minority are favored in terms of jobs & education
• Could read/write English
After independence in 1948
• New government made up of mainly Sinhalese
• Introduced policies that favored the Sinhalese
Ceylon Citizenship Qualification Act in 1948
granted to those who were born in Sri Lanka
granted to those whose father and grandfather were also born there
Result of the Act
Many Indian Tamils brought from India by the British to work in Sri Lanka became stateless
Indian Tamils lost their basic rights: education, jobs, housing and voting
Issues that led to Conflict
Denying Indian Tamils of citizenship
Why?-so that Tamils will not be given voting rightsand Tamils will not gain political power
1964: India tried to help but was not successful.2003: Grant of Citizenship to Persons of Indian Origin Bill:
Citizenship to any person of Indian origin who has lived in Sri Lanka since 1964 or was descended from someone who had stayed in Sri Lanka since that date.
Under the British Rule
• Many educated Tamils could enter government service
• They held important jobs in the government
• Sinhalese were disadvantaged because they could not read/write English well.
After Independence
1. Sinhala was made the only official language of administration in 1956.
2. Tamils in the government service were given three years to learn Sinhala or be dismissed from the job.
Tamils’ Reaction to the 1956 Official Language
Act
Tamils’ Reaction to the 1956 Official Language
ActUnhappy as they were now unable to get jobs or promotions
Organized a peaceful demonstration against the Official Language Act
Peaceful demonstration was disrupted by the Sinhalese supporters – riots occurred.
Making Sinhala the official language-only language of administration, instead of English language
Why ? -Nationalistic feelings-to win support of Sinhalese voters-to give Sinhalese more opportunities to better jobs
Issues that led to Conflict
BUT -made it difficult for Tamils to get government jobs
Compromise : 1978 -recognition of Tamil as national language and language of administration in Tamil majority areas
Before 1970
University admission based on merit & exams are in English
After 1970
Tamil students have to score higher marks than the Sinhalese students to enter the same courses in the universities.
Fixed number of places reserved for Sinhalese
Higher entry standards for Tamils for University Admission
Why ? -To allow more Sinhalese to study in the University
Issues that led to Conflict
BUT-more difficult for Tamil students to enter University
• Transferred Sinhalese from the densely populated south-western and and central areas into the Tamil area.
• The aim of this policy was to provide land for the landless Sinhalese peasants to live on and to cultivate rice.
Resettling Sinhalese in Tamil areas
Why ?•To give landless Sinhalese peasants to make a living•To change population representation : to increase Sinhalese population so that the area becomes Sinhalese majority
Issues that led to Conflict
BUT-made Tamils a minority in the area-made life more difficult for Tamils with the coming of the army and militant monks
SRI LANKASRI LANKA
Racial DifferencesSinhalese vs Tamils
Conflicts overConflicts overCitizenship rightsGovernment Jobs
University AdmissionResettlement of Population
2 views, 2 takes
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_tSIkecolo&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fvideo.google.com%2Fvideosearch%3Fq%3Dtamil%2Btigers%26oe%3Dutf-8%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26um%3D1%26ie%3DUTF-8%26ei%3DIfp&feature=player_embedded
• http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x88jka_tamil-tigers-release-video_news