scholarly journals The Problems of Survival for the Diasporic Sri Lankan Tamil Society Depicted in the Sri Lankan Tamil Diasporic Literature

2021 ◽  
pp. 9-17
Author(s):  
Kennedy J
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
Ethnic Conflicts ◽  
Political Asylum ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
Life Condition ◽  
Diasporic Literature ◽  
Political Refugees ◽  
The Social

Diasporic Literature becomes a prominent place in the field of literature. So is to the Sri Lankan Tamil Diasporic Literature. It is because the Sri Lankan Tamil diasporic literature speaks about the identity of the Sri Lanka Tamils who are in the verge of losing their language and culture in the hosting countries where they seek political asylum. The present study analyses the challenges faced in the life of the displaced Tamils. Also, this study explains not only the emergence of the new life condition when the large number of Tamils displaced from Sri Lanka during the ethnic conflicts broke out after 1980’S and the challenges, and oppression that they underwent in the aspect of family, profession, education, language, and culture as they have been put into the new life condition as political refugees, but also asserts the fact that the diasporic literature is the social documentation to expose such vulnerabilities of the diasporic victims. Therefore, the present study arrives at a conclusion that there.

The Hybrid Regime in Post-Civil War Sri Lanka

2012 ◽  
Vol 49 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 437-447 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laksiri Jayasuriya
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Political System ◽  
Political Order ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
Parliamentary Elections ◽  
The Social ◽  
Dominant State ◽  
Hybrid Regime ◽  
Social Ethos

Following the presidential and parliamentary elections in 2010, the Sri Lankan political system has seen the rise of a ‘one-party dominant state’ and a ‘hybrid regime’. This new political order consists of a mix of democratic and authoritarian elements largely seen in countries such as Malaysia and Singapore. This essay examines the social and political changes introduced by the highly militarized regime led by Mahinda Rajapaksa, which has slanted towards a Kautilyan ideology and authoritarian constitutionalism. It is argued that Sri Lanka needs a glasnost, marking a new political and social ethos based on the principles of accountability, openness, transparency, freedom and justice.

Transformation of Traditional Environments: The Spatial Geography of Culture and Built-Form in Sri Lanka

2006 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 20-28
Author(s):  
Ranjith Dayaratne
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Traditional Culture ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
Economic Policies ◽  
Cultural Transformations ◽  
Built Form ◽  
The Social ◽  
Sacred And Profane

This paper examines the transformations that have been taking place in culture and built form in Sri Lanka and their spatial geography mooted by the open economic policies introduced in the 1970 s and the subsequent developments. It analyses the major facets of the dominant Sinhalese culture having located them within the sacred and profane realms, nature and its social make up. Major characteristics of the traditional culture and built-form are identified and through a longitudinal study of six case studies around the southern region, the study elucidates the major transformations and the social and societal forces behind them. The paper proposes three models for understanding such cultural transformations; Conventional-Sri Lankan, Transitional-Sri Lankan, and Euro-Sri Lankan, the forms of which could also be used in other similar situations.

scholarly journals To Be or Not to Be a Hero

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 96-114
Author(s):  
Matti Weisdorf ◽  
Birgitte Refslund Sørensen
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
Post Injury ◽  
Ethnographic Fieldwork ◽  
The Social ◽  
Material Benefits ◽  
Struggle For Recognition ◽  
Collective Narrative

Based on long-term ethnographic fieldwork in and around a so-called War Hero Village (Ranavirugama) in northwestern Sri Lanka, this article traces the social (un)becomings of Sri Lankan Army veterans injured during the civil war with the Tamil liberation front. It argues that such veterans have long been able to draw on a materially rewarding narrative of sacrifice and carnal capital—epitomized in the honorific ranaviru (war hero)—in order to produce a particular kind of veteran citizenship, let alone subjectivity, and thus to pursue socially meaningful post-injury existences. In the eyes of the veterans themselves, however, this celebratory narrative is eroding and a “collective narrative” characterized by a kind of social forgetting of the injured veteran is emerging. Material benefits notwithstanding, this narrative contestation entails a “struggle for recognition” that threatens to leave them not only disabled but also with no one to be, or become.

"Education Is All About Opportunities, Isn't It?": A Biographical Perspective on Learning and Teaching English in Sri Lanka

2010 ◽  
Vol 80 (4) ◽  
pp. 517-541 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Hayes
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
Sociocultural Context ◽  
Teaching English ◽  
Teaching Experiences ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Life Chances ◽  
The Social

In this article, David Hayes explores the language learning and teaching experiences of a teacher of English in Sri Lanka. He shows how the acquisition of English enabled the teacher to access the social capital available to speakers of English, which holds a divisive place in postcolonial Sri Lankan society. In his reflections on his career, this teacher grants primary importance to the opportunities offered by education in general, not the benefits of acquiring English. This complements his commitment to improving the life chances of children from less advantaged groups in Sri Lanka. Hayes contends that the richness of the teacher's portrayal of his career, and the meanings of English and education for him, offers an opportunity to understand the place of English within a particular sociocultural context.

Dairy Fears: Moral Panic around Food Contamination Scandals in Contemporary Sri Lanka

2021 ◽  
pp. 239386172110146
Author(s):  
James Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Dairy Products ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
Food Contamination ◽  
Dairy Production ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
Common Belief ◽  
The Social ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
The Common

A major food contamination scandal occurred in Sri Lanka in 2013 after it was alleged that Fonterra dairy products contained chemicals known to have a negative effect on human health. This crisis was influenced by unique factors that, I argue, are particular to the social and cultural context of Sri Lanka. In this article, I will be focusing on several such factors: (a) specific considerations about the Sri Lankan dairy industry; (b) the growing influence of the worship of the deity Kiri Amma, a god that is associated uniquely with dairy and dairy production; (c) the common belief that milk possesses a unique transformative and curative property; and (d) prevailing food conspiracies that maintain that external groups are seeking to harm the Sinhalese people by purposefully poisoning confectionary and dairy products. By considering these factors, we can better understand how inter-ethnic and inter-religious tensions can precipitate in Sri Lanka.

scholarly journals Perceived Readiness of Educated Youth towards Ethnic Integration in Sri Lanka

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-44
Author(s):  
M.S. Dimuthu Kumari
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Social Integration ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Integration Model ◽  
Ethnic Integration ◽  
The Social

Sri Lanka is a multi-ethnic society hence the ethnic integration has been a hot topic for decades.   By 2021, it has been 73 years after the independence from British empires, however, natives still struggle for the reconciliation among themselves. Often occurred ethnic clashes usually account for a huge social and economic cost.  Various scholars have highlighted that youth is highly active in initiating ethnic clashes. And, it is quoted specifically for the ‘Educated youth’ in Sri Lankan context. Therefore, this study explores the perceptions of ‘multi-ethnic, educated youth’ in heightening ethnic integration in Sri Lanka. This study utilized quantitative research approach and survey method. Primary data was mainly used for the study and collected through an online questionnaire. 100 multi-ethnic youth who are studying in higher education institutions in Sri Lanka selected as the sample using random sampling technique.  The readiness of respondents was basically measured through their perceptions with respect to the social integration model proposed by Awang et al (2019). Descriptive statistics were used in analyzing data. The results showed that the overall readiness of educated youth in promoting ethnic integration is high in Sri Lankan context. The respondents are almost ready for the social acceptance and cultural appreciation levels of the model. However, they have showed, relatively a slight attraction towards compromisation and adaptation levels for which a high degree of ethnic tolerance is required. Therefore, it can be concluded that the majority of educated youth are social extroverts and are aware the importance of integration. However, since they showed a little attraction towards the upper layers of integration pyramid, there is a need of re-evaluating existing social integration policies. So that, some policy recommendations are suggested to enhance more operational activities in reconciliation process to reach the upper levels of ethnic integration (compromization and adaptation) in Sri Lankan context.

The Worldmaking Agency of the Sri Lankan Travel Blogger

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 117-127
Author(s):  
Gauthami Kamalika Jayathilaka
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Travel Writing ◽  
Knowledge Production ◽  
English Language ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
Alternative Representation ◽  
Structure And Agency ◽  
The Social ◽  
Critical Link ◽  
The Way

This article presents a scrutiny of the powerful "worldmaking" role performed by English language travel writers in the context of Sri Lanka. It critically positions travel representations as a crucial means of knowledge production that shapes the way Sri Lanka is known and experienced. In that, it examines an emerging version of the country produced by young Sri Lankan travel bloggers through their employment of an "activist gaze" alongside the use of a "promotional gaze" by professional tourism writers. The article illuminates each of these distinctive worldmaking roles; the latter engaging the authority of tourism in constructing/perpetuating a particular favored version of the country to persuade the global tourist, and the former's "aware" agency in constructing a potential or alternative representation distinctive from the first. However, surpassing an exploration of representations and their worldmaking power, the article sheds light on the way writers are inculcated into certain standpoints and their negotiation of these through the employment of the Bourdieusian concepts of habitus, capital, and field. As such, it innovatively combines structure and agency in the study of tourism representations, unveiling the social implications underlying worldmaking and thereby elucidating the critical link between the English language, travel writing and social class in an understudied postcolonial context of South Asia.

scholarly journals Sri Lankan Tamil Refugees in India: Conceptual Framework of Repatriation Success

Refuge ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 73-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miriam George ◽  
Anita Vaillancourt ◽  
S. Irudaya Rajan
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Social Relationships ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
Refugee Camps ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
Governmental Agencies ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Key Concepts ◽  
Equal Citizenship

Repatriation to Sri Lanka has become a primary challenge to Sri Lankan Tamil refugees in Indian refugee camps, and a matter of significant public discussion in India and Sri Lanka. Anxiety about repatriation among Sri Lankan Tamil refugees and lack of initiation from the Sri Lankan government threatens the development of a coherent repatriation strategy. This article proposes a conceptual framework of repatriation success for Sri Lankan Tamil refugees, which the Sri Lankan government, non-governmental agencies, and Sri Lankan Tamil refugees may use to develop a concrete strategy for repatriation. Based upon the study results of two of the authors’ repatriation studies, this article identifies and describes the four key concepts of the repatriation framework: livelihood development, language and culture awareness, social relationships, and equal citizenship within a nation.

The Ritual of Devol Māduā: Problematizing Dharma in the Ethnic Conflicts of Sri Lanka

2003 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 326-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
Syed Jamil Ahmed
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
Associate Professor ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
Ethnic Conflicts ◽  
Moral Law ◽  
World Community ◽  
Problematic Relationship ◽  
The World ◽  
The University

Western consciousness of Sri Lanka tends to be limited to bracketing the secessionist ‘Tamil Tigers’ among the ‘terrorist threats’ facing the world community. In truth, tensions between the Sinhalese and Tamil communities of Sri Lanka go back two millennia, and Syed Jamil Ahmed argues here that the conflict is reflected in the myths of origin of both communities and the rituals through which they are still re-enacted. He believes that one of these, the ritual of Devol Māduā, offers a possible resolution to the problematic relationship between religious and moral law, or dharma, and the pragmatics of statecraft in Sri Lanka. After examining the historical context of Buddhism in Sri Lanka and the myths of origin associated with the three key deities in the ritual, he offers an episode-by-episode description of the event, and goes on to suggest that the function of the ritual in Sinhalese–Buddhist society is revealing in terms of the dialectics of pacifism and violence that Buddhism faces in Sri Lankan ethnic conflict. Syed Jamil Ahmed is a director and designer based in Bangladesh, where he is Associate Professor at the Department of Theatre and Music in the University of Dhaka. In 2001–2 he was a visiting faculty member at King Alfred's College, Winchester. He wrote on ‘Decoding Myths in the Nepalese Festival of Indra Jātrā’ in NTQ 74, and his full-length publications – Acinpakhi Infinity: Indigenous Theatre in Bangladesh (Dhaka University Press, 2000) and In Praise of Niranjan: Islam, Theatre, and Bangladesh (Dhaka: Pathak Samabesh, 2001) – catalogue the wide variety of indigenous theatre forms in Bangladesh.

Evolution of the Therav?da Buddhist Idea of ‘Merittransference’ to the Dead, and its Role in Sri Lankan Buddhist Culture

2013 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soorakkulame Pemarathana
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Psychological Needs ◽  
Sri Lankan ◽  
The Third ◽  
Buddhist Practice ◽  
Cultural Life ◽  
The Social ◽  
Third Stage ◽  
Two Stages ◽  
Contemporary Practice

The practice of merit-transference in Sri Lankan Therav?da Buddhism has evolved over three important stages of development, namely, assigning of dakkhi??, giving of patti, and direct transferring of merit. These stages are generally understood as similar practices but are significantly different from each other. It is not the merit but the meritorious act that is dedicated to, or shared with the departed ones in first two stages. Pattid?na, in this context, does not strictly mean giving merit or giving what is obtained or achieved, as it has so far been interpreted, but giving a share of or stake in the ownership of a meritorious act. It is in the third stage that the idea of merit-transference appeared in Buddhist practice in Sri Lanka. Understanding this historical development is important for interpreting Buddhist texts in their historical contexts as well as for realizing the larger role assigned to the living in the contemporary practice of merit-transference (pu?y?numodan?/ pin anumodan-/ pin d?ma) and its influence on other arena of social and cultural life in Sri Lanka. This idea of merit-transference transformed mourning and sorrowful funerals into merit-making events. Practices related to this idea of merit-transference also successfully fulfill the psychological needs of the living to assist departed relatives and to maintain some form of relationship with them. It also allowed local beliefs to be assimilated into the Buddhist fold and shaped the social structure of the living, particularly the lay-monastic relationship.

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