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The Young Researchers Collective, Sri Lanka

Youth Voices in Post-War Sri Lanka: Challenges,Aspirations and Opportunities for Transformation

Proceedings of the Young Researchers Forum 2012

20th & 21st January, 2012

The Western Province Aesthetic Resort, Colombo 7


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The Young Researchers Collective, Sri Lanka

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

You are free to copy, distribute and transmit the work or adapt thework provided that you attribute the work and do not use it forcommercial purposes. If you alter, transform, or build upon this work,you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similarlicense to this one.

ISBN 978-955-0899-00-5

Colombo, Sri Lanka

2012


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Table of Contents

The Young Researchers Collective? i

Youth Voices in Post-War Sri Lanka ii Introducing the Young Researchers Forum iv

Full Program for YRF 2012 i x

About the Presenters xiii

Acknowledgements xix

Education and Empowerment

A Degree for Sale (?): Can Private Higher Education (Dis-) Empower the

Sri Lankan Youth?-Rusiru Kalpagee Chitrasena 3

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Violation of individual rights of persons from Plantation Sector in obtaining

personal documents: a case study from the Badulla District

- Fahurdeen Sajeed Ahamed 34

Environmental Concerns and Challenges

The impact of the War on Water Resources in Post-War Sri Lanka

- W.A.Upul Wickramasinghe 39

Youth Voice: The Missing Link in Sri Lankas Environmental Discourse

- Thiagi Piyadasa 45

Representation and Articulation

Performativity and Performance: An Analysis of the portrayal of gender

identity of women in plays written by Sri Lankan Playwrights

- Sabreena Niles 49

The Sri Lankan IDP: A Portrayal by the Media

- Sachee Ranaweera 53

Crime, Violence and Justice

The Romanticization of Crime on News Broadcasts in Post-War Sri Lanka

- Dinidu Karunanayake 57

(In)Justice in Sri Lankan Society: Alternative Understandings of Justice

in Sri Lanka

- Shashik Dhanushka Silva 59

Inclusion, Politics and Participation

Tamil Moderate Politics and Discontent among Tamil Youths in Sri Lanka:

Some Introductory Notes on their Relationship from 1948 to the Present.

- Kumarvadivel Guruparan 63

Seeing Double?: Contesting Visions of Reconciliation in Post-War Sri Lanka

- Andi Schubert 65 The Personal and the Public

Youth and Facebook: The Impact on the Private Public Distinction

- Tharindi Udalagama 69 The Collusion of Three Identities: Sri Lankan. Muslim. Woman.

- Hyshyama Hamin 73


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The Young Researchers Forum 2012

i

The Young Researchers Collective , Sri Lanka

The Young Researchers C ollective is an association of young

researchers. It functions as a space and an opportunity for young

researchers who want to link their research with advocacy and

activism. The YRC is working to develop and equip the next

generation of research activists and public intellectuals in Sri Lanka. It

was started in 2010 by a group of young researchers.

The YRC is working to link research done by young people withadvocacy and activism on issues affecting their lives and

communities. We are working towards this by

encouraging more grounded research by young researchers

with a commitment to transforming the power structures and

realities of peoples lives.

equipping young people with skills and knowledge to advocate

on the issues affecting their lives.

promoting a culture of informed activism by developing

resources and providing intellectual and strategic support to

interventions being made by young people. advocating for and promoting belief in the capacity of young

people as researchers, policy makers and leaders who can take

action on issues affecting their lives.


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ii

Youth Voices in Post-War Sri Lanka: Challenges, Aspirations &

Opportunities for Transformation

It is with great pleasure we announce the first Young Researchers

Forum (the YRF) which will be held in January 2012 under the theme

Youth Voices in Post-War Sri Lanka: Challenges, Aspirations &

Opportunities for Transformation.

Why Youth?

In many discussions on youth and young people, there is a tendency

to limit youth issues to education and employment. However as

young researchers we understand the concept of youth issues as

being issues affecting the lives of young people and their

communities. This is because we understand that issues and

concerns are not self-contained but intersect and cross cut across

identities and locations.

Why youth voices?

The year 2011 has been the year of the youth revolution. Educated

young people who were disillusioned with the status quo in Tunisia,

Egypt and a number of other countries, took to the streets to protest

and demand change. Many of these movements were organized

using twitter and facebook and utilized the power of technology to

both mobilize and organize.

In a number of other countries around the world ranging from Yemen

to the United States of America young people have been at the


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forefront of movements for change in 2011. All of this suggests that

young people are more aware of the issues and challenges that they

face and are finding new ways to speak out about these challenges,the opportunities that are open to them and their aspirations for a

better tomorrow.

Why post-war Sri Lanka?

Sri Lanka has known a great deal of conflict and turmoil over the past

40 years. As Sri Lanka seeks to deal with this legacy of violence it isimportant to understand both the concerns of the past as well as the

aspirations for the future.

Young people have been closely involved in the violence that

engulfed Sri Lanka over the past few decades. Young people felt

excluded, frustrated and desperate. What took place over the past 40

years has shown that there is a strong possibility of a recurrence

unless these feelings are expressed and the underlying reasons for

these feelings are addressed.

We believe that young researchers can play an important role in

bringing to the fore not just the issues facing young people but also

the concerns faced by their communities. The YRF presents an

opportunity for young researchers around the country to share their

views on the challenges, opportunities and aspirations that are

shaping the lives of young people in their communities today.


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Introducing the Young Researchers Forum 2012

The Young Researchers' Forum is a space and an opportunity for

Young Researchers to present their work, share their ideas, and

engage in discussions in order to develop their understanding of and

solutions to issues that are important to them and their communities.

You may have realized already that the structure, concept and

outlook of YRF 2012 are somewhat different from most academic

conferences. I n a nutshell, YRF 2012 is an experiment indemocratizing the process of knowledge production.

As young researchers who have presented at academic conferences it

is impossible to miss the power dynamics that undergird and

intersect the space of the academic conference. In seeking to build our

own space we wanted to draw on our own experiences and ideas to

create a space that is an alternative to the traditional academic

conference. In the next few pages we will introduce you to this

alternative space.

At the YRF we encourage you to move from audience to participant;

actively shaping and contributing to the outcomes of the Forum. We

see this as an experiment because many of these ideas are being

attempted for the first time in Sri Lanka. We understand the word

participant broadly and we hope we are able to continue to engage

with you both online and offline, hopefully before and even after the

Forum is over.


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The space of the Young Researchers Forum is heavily influenced by

the thinking of Harrison Owen and Open Space Technology (OST). 1

The goal of OST has been defined as being to create time and spacefor people to engage deeply and creatively around issues of concern

to them. 2 One of Owens key insights in his work as an organizer of

conferences was the fact that most of the productive and interesting

discussions of a conference take place during the one item on the

agenda that cannot be extensively planned for: the meal/tea breaks.

The work of OST is an attempt to focus more on drawing these spacesand discussions into the main agenda of a conference or in this case

the Young Researchers Forum 2012.

For many of the young researchers who will present at YRF 2012 this

will be their first experience of an academic conference. Almost all of

them are yet to secure a post-graduate degree and while we do notmean this as a way of making excuses we suggest that this be kept in

mind when engaging and discussing with the young researchers

presenting at YRF 2012. In planning and preparing for YRF 2012 we

recognized the importance of this kind of open discussion and

dialogue on any research paper and the role this could play in

bettering the work of a young researcher attempting to construct newknowledge.

In order to achieve this, there are five principles guiding YRF 2012:

1 For further details see Owen, H. (2008). Open Space Technology: A User's Guide. San

Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers2 http://www.chriscorrigan.com/openspace/whatisos.html


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1. The Work in Progress PrincipleUnlike many other academic conferences which emphasize the

presentation of more or less completed work, YRF 2012 seeks to

present work in progress. As young researchers there is much to be

learnt and understood about research and knowledge production

processes. We believe that this can be done through more discussion

and input into our ideas and work. The first draft principle holds that

our work is a presentation of work in progress; a first draft rather

than a completed product with neat solutions to all questions thathave been raised through our research. We are eager to hear your

thoughts and input as to how we can better our work.

1. The Informal Presentation Principle

During the course of the Forum you may also notice that the

presentations take on a less formal tone and are not as rigid as apresentation at an academic conference. This is not because we are

treating the subject matter lightly but because we are focused heavily

on engendering discussion and debate in order to improve our work.

We also believe that the rigidity and formality of language used in

formal academic presentations may at times work to exclude and

alienate most people from their research. Due to this we havesuggested to the presenters that they approach their presentations as

a more informal presentation that, among other styles, is similar to

the kind of presentations that take place during TED conferences. The

emphasis of this principle is the presentation of interesting ideas in a

simple and accessible presentation.


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2. The Discussion Groups Principle

We believe that knowledge is best produced through collaboration

and discussion. At YRF 2012 we are attempting to create as many

spaces and opportunities as possible for discussion and dialogue on

the issues that are raised through the Forum. In order to do this the

presentations will follow the following format Each presentation

will take place as a plenary session. However after the completion of

all presentations the audience will be given a few minutes to decide

and then move in to a smaller group with a presenter of her or his

choice in order to further discuss the ideas or issues that they found

interesting during that particular presentation. A moderator/

facilitator will be announced for each group in order to facilitate the

discussion. We have also strongly recommended to the presenters

that they include some form of acknowledgement to the members oftheir group in their final paper.

3. The Storehouse Principle

YRF 2012 seeks to build a knowledge base that can be shared widely

with people around the country and the world. We believe that as the

internet spreads, it will change how knowledge is disseminated andshared but also how knowledge is stored as well. With this in mind

we are hoping to upload many of the presentations that take place

during the Forum on to youtube and share it on other platforms such

as our website, facebook and on twitter with a view to both storing

and spreading these ideas widely.


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4. The Idea Incubator Principle

We hope that the Forum will spark ideas. But often ideas that are

sparked remain just that a spark. For the best ideas to stay alive they

may require a short stint in an incubator. For this we suggest you

make use of our idea incubator to post any ideas or opinions that you

may have. We want to hear and find out more about your ideas and

there may be a number of other people who have similar ideas or

would like to discuss your idea with you at some point of time. Please

make use of our idea incubator area to post any ideas or thoughts that

occur to you during the Forum. You could also use this as a way of

giving us feedback on how you feel about the conference and how we

can improve on your experience.

The Law of Two Feet

Open Space Technology only has one law The Law of Two Feet.

This law holds that if you feel you are not learning and not

contributing get on your feet and shift to somewhere else. Maybe you

could join the other discussion group. Perhaps you could have a look

at our Idea Incubator and post some ideas yourself for further

discussion.

We present these principles as a way to introduce you and guide you

through the concept of the Forum. We want you to know that the real

space of the forum belongs to you our participants and presenters

and not us.

THE YRC


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Forum Program

Program - 20 th January - Morning

8.30am-9.00am

Registration

9.00am-10.00am

Opening Ceremony

10.00am-10.15am

Tea

10.15am-11.30am

Session 1 Education and EmpowermentA Degree for Sale (?): Can Private Higher Education(Dis-) Empower the Sri Lankan Youth?

-Rusiru Kalpagee Chitrasena

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Program - 20 th January Afternoon

12.30pm-1.15pm Lunch

1.15pm-2.15pm

Plenary Discussion- Being Young and Being aResearcher

2.15pm-3.15pm

Session 3 - Youth in Sri Lanka

The Youth Vote: A Hope For Democracy

-Navam NilesCapturing Gandhiji's Attention: A History of a YouthMovement in Colonial Ceylon

- Niyanthini Kadirgamar 3.15pm-3.30pm

Tea

3.30pm-4.30pm

Session 4 - Minorities: Place and Belonging

Life Changes of Migrants

- I.D.G. Dharmasinghe

Violation of individual rights of persons from PlantationSector in obtaining personal documents: a case studyfrom the Badulla District

- Fahurdeen Sajeed Ahamed

4.30pm-5.30pm

Plenary Linking Research and Action


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Program - 21 st January Morning

9.00am-10.00am

Session 5 Environmental Concerns and ChallengesThe impact of the War on Water Resources in Post-WarSri Lanka

- W.A.Upul Wickramasinghe

Youth Voice: The Missing Link in Sri LankasEnvironmental Discourse

- Thiagi Piyadasa

10.00am-10.15am

Tea

10.15am-11.15am

Session 6 - Representation and Articulation

Performativity and Performance: An Analysis of the portrayalof gender identity of women in plays written by Sri LankanPlaywrights

- Sabreena Niles

The Sri Lankan IDP: A Portrayal by the Media

- Sachee Ranaweera

11.15am-12.15pm

Session 7 - Crime, Violence and Justice

The Romanticization of Crime on News Broadcasts inPost-War Sri Lanka

- Dinidu Karunanayake

(In)Justice in Sri Lankan Society: AlternativeUnderstandings of Justice in Sri Lanka

- Shashik Dhanushka Silva


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Program - 21 st January Afternoon

12.15pm-1.00pm Lunch

1.00pm-2.30pm

The Future for Young Researchers & Young Researchers for theFuture

2.30pm-3.30pm

Session 8- Inclusion, Politics and Participation

Tamil Moderate Politics and Discontent among Tamil Youths

in Sri Lanka: Some Introductory Notes on their Relationshipfrom 1948 to the Present.

- Kumarvadivel Guruparan

Seeing Double?: Contesting Visions of Reconciliation in Post-War Sri Lanka

- Andi Schubert

3.00pm-3.30pm

Tea

3.30pm-4.30pm

Session 9 - The Personal and the Public

Youth and Facebook: The Impact on the Private PublicDistinction

- Tharindi Udalagama

The Collusion of Three Identities: Sri Lankan. Muslim.Woman.

- Hyshyama Hamin

4.30pm-5.30pm

Closing Ceremony


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About the Presenters

Rusiru Kalpagee Chitrasena has an academic background in English

Literature and Linguistics from the University of Kelaniya, and Legal

Studies from the University of London. His research interests include

education, language, linguistics, literature, and culture.

E: [email protected]

Mahesh Premarathne graduated from the University of Colombo and

his interests include research on medical sociology, social work,

education, development sociology, urban, and environmental

sociology.


Nirosha Ruwanpathirana holds a BA (Hons) in Sociology from the

University of Colombo. Her research interests include gender and

women, migration, climate change adaptation, medicine, rural and

urban studies, psychology and patron client relationship.


Sanjaya Pradeep , BA (Hons) Peradeniya, MPPG (NOMA) Dhaka, is a

lecturer in Political Science at the Department of Social Science,

University of Sabaragamuva.

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Geethika Dharmasinghe holds a BA (Hons) in Sociology from the

University of Colombo, where she is also presently reading for a MA

in Sociology. She is a Research Assistant at the International Centrefor Ethnic Studies (ICES) Colombo, working on issues of disability.


Fahurdeen Sajeed Ahamed is an Attorney at Law working with the

Equal Access to Justice Project - a joint project between the Ministry

of National Languages and Social Integration and the United NationsDevelopment Programme.


Upul Wickramasinghe holds a BSc in Chemistry and Micro Biology

from the University of Kelaniya and is presently reading for an MSc

in Analytical Chemistry at the University of Colombo. He works as aChemical Analyst at SGS Lanka Pvt. Ltd and is currently engaged in a

research on Water and Sanitation in the North and East of Sri Lanka.


Thiagi Piyadasa holds a BA (Hons) in International Relations from

the University of Colombo, and is presently reading for a LLB at the

Open University of Sri Lanka. She is attached to Oxfam Australia as a

Programme Officer, and is the Secretary of the YRC. Her research and

activist interests include gender, womens rights, development,

economic, social and cultural rights and youth issues.

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Sabreena Niles completed her BA (Hons) in English at the University

of Kelaniya and is currently employed at the English Language

Teaching Unit at the University of Kelaniya. Her teaching andresearch interests range from diverse forms of drama and poetry to

postcolonial literature, American literature and Sri Lankan fiction and

her theoretical interests include feminism, psychoanalysis and

postcolonialism.


Sachee Ranaweera is a Temporary Assistant Lecturer at the English

Language Teaching Unit of the University of Kelaniya. She has a B.A.

(Hons) in English and is currently reading for her Masters in

Linguistics from the University of Kelaniya. Her research interests are

English language teaching, sociolingusitics and applied linguistics.


Dinidu Karunanayake holds a BA (Hons) in English from the

University of Colombo. In 2009, he participated as an exchange

student at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia. He is currently

an Assistant Lecturer at the Department of English, University of

Kelaniya.

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Shashik Dhanushka is presently attached to the Applied Research

Unit of UNOPS, having previously been attached to Social Indicator,

CPA for 5 years. He has completed a Diploma in InternationalRelations at the Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies (BCIS)

and is presently reading for an ART Degree at the University of

Kelaniya.


Kumaravadivel Guruparan is an academic lawyer who teaches at theDepartment of Law of the University of Jaffna. He studied at Jaffna

Hindu College and the University of Colombo and more recently at

the University of Oxford. His research interests lie in the vast domain

of political and constitutional theory and more particularly in the law

and politics of self-determination and plurinationalism.


Andi Schubert is a researcher and activist. He is the co-founder and

coordinator of the YRC. Andi graduated with a BA (Hons) in English

from the University of Kelaniya. His areas of work and academic

interest are broadly identity and conflict, youth issues and education.

Apart from his work with the YRC, Andi is also a visiting lecturer at

the English Language Teaching Unit at the University of Sri

Jayawardanepura.

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Tharindi Udalagama holds a BA (Hons) in Sociology from the

University of Colombo and has also completed her Professional

Qualification in Human Resource Management from the Institute ofPersonnel Management, Sri Lanka. Her research interests include

new media in the post modern world, bioethics, public health and

comparative religion. She is a visiting lecturer at Aquinas University

College, and a Research Associate at the Faculty of Medicine,

University of Colombo.


Hyshyama Hamin holds a BA in Development Studies from the

University of Kathmandu. She has been working on gender based

violence (GBV) and women's rights issues for the past 6 years both in

Nepal and Sri Lanka. She is currently engaged in a project seeking to

address GBV and women and peace building issues in Sri Lanka.

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Acknowledgements

Thank you for being a part of the Young Researchers Forum 201 2.

We truly are happy to have you here and hope you will be able tolearn and contribute to the discussions at the Forum.

We want to thank all our presenters for the time and effort they have

put in and hope that they will benefit through their participation in

YRF 2012.

We wish to express our profound thanks to Prof. Jayadeva Uyangoda

for his support, patience, encouragement and willingness to support

us when the concept of the YRC was still in its embryonic stages. Our

thanks is also due to Mr. Pradeep Peiris for his support and guidance

especially with regards to our training in conducting survey research.

We must also thank the Social Scientists Association foraccommodating us and hosting the training sessions that have been

conducted thus far.

We place on record our appreciation of Beyond Borders Sri Lanka for

partnering with us and enabling us to put together this program.

The YRC expresses a sincere thank you to Prof. Neloufer De Mel,Prof. Maithree Wickramasinghe, Dr. Kumari Jayawardena, Dr. Harini

Amarasuriya, Dr. Nishan De Mel, Mr. B. Skanthakumar, Mr. Mirak

Raheem, Ms. Bhavani Fonseka, Mr. Sanjana Hattotuwa, Ms. Lucy

Holdaway, Ms. Chulani Kodikara and Ms. Dinesha Samararatne for

the advice and guidance that they have provided to the Collective.


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The YRC also wishes to acknowledge and thank the American Centre

for their generous assistance and support for our project through the

Youth Empowerment Grants program. A special thank you to Mr.Christopher Teal, Ms. Niambi Young, Mr. Hector Gonzalez, Mr. Jeff

Anderson, Ms. Sina Jones, Ms. Samanthi De Costa and the staff at the

American Centre for their help and assistance throughout the course

of this project.

To Hanim Abdul Cader and Shamanthi Rajasingham: a big thank you

for their stunning work and the design support that they have

provided. We also wish to acknowledge the invaluable contributions

of Sanjaya Senanayake, Rehan Fernando, Manikya Kodituwakku and

Jaliya Wijewardene for their help with documenting YRF 2012.

Thanks is also due to Chathuri Dissanayake and Marisa De Silva for

their help with media and publicity for the Forum and to SabreenaNiles for her help with the momentos.

The YRC also thanks Thilini and the staff at the Western Province

Aesthetic Resort for their support for YRF 2012. A thank you also to

Mr. Phillip of Big Bird Printers for a great job with the printing.

Thanks also to Mr. Suresh for his support in securing translators and

translation equipment for the Forum.

Finally thank you to all the volunteers and friends who contributed in

so many different ways to making this a success. We truly do

appreciate it.

The YRC


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Extended Abstracts


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Education and Empowerment


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A Degree for Sale (?): Can Private Higher Education (Dis-)

Empower the Sri Lankan Youth?

Rusiru Kalpagee Chitrasena

[email protected]

Introduction:

A significant majority of academics, professionals, students and

members of the public severely condemns the use of higher educationas a commercial product and the legitimization of a trade-oriented

definition vis-- vis the governments intention to strengthen private

universities/ higher education industry in Sri Lanka. This paper

intends to examine, from the perspective of the Sri Lankan youth,

whether and how private higher education could empower or

disempower the Sri Lankan youth as claimed by parties who stronglyadvocate and condemn it.

Although private educational and higher educational institutes are

not a new phenomenon in the country and has been a controversial

subject throughout, the government plans to increase support for the

establishment of private universities and the reluctance of the

professional medical bodies to grant approval for the newly

established private medical college in Sri Lanka has given rise to a

great deal of heated debate. However, there is an explanatory gap in

the discourses advocating and opposing private higher education in

Sri Lanka for they seem to be obsessed with logistical and monetary

aspects of the problem.
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The present study advocates a philosophy of empowerment through

education and taking empowerment as the basis for analysis; it

intends to answer the question posed in the title: Can private highereducation (dis-) empower the Sri Lankan Youth? However, my

concern is not singular based on the understanding that what could

empower one segment in any community could dis-empower another

segment of the same community. To suggest this, in my title, I add

the prefix dis within brackets before the word empower and a

question mark is added within brackets to the phrase, a degree forsale, a reflection of the popular Sri Lankan ideology of perceiving

private higher educational institutes as upadhi kada.

The present research comes under the sub- theme of Education and

Empowerment of the conference and while seeking to give voice to

the youth perspectives, it examines challenges, preoccupations,aspirations and opportunities put forward to the Sri Lankan youth by

private higher education.

Methodology:

The methodology of the present research features a series of semi-

structured interviews with 60 randomly-selected young Sri Lankansbetween 16-30, of which 37 were female and 23 were male. Most of

the respondents were from urban and semi-urban areas of the

western province although other provinces were also represented.

The framework for the interview was compiled in English and the

interview was originally meant to be conducted in English. However,

since some respondents had problems in their English language


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proficiency, I had to conduct some interviews in Sinhalese as well.

The research sample seeks to represent a cross-section of the Sri

Lankan youth including school students, undergraduates/graduatesand post-graduate students from state/private higher education

institutes in Sri Lanka, professionals without university qualifications,

unemployed school leavers and graduates, prospective entrants to Sri

Lankan universities, and prospective clients of private higher

educational institutes. In addition, as a secondary research option,

reference will be made to a selection of published statistics andarticles from popular and academic sources. As far as research

limitations are concerned, it was strongly felt that, that the rural

youth was not adequately represented, and due to my limited

proficiency in Tamil, I was not able to interview any monolingual

Tamil speakers. As a researcher who believes in methodological

pluralism, I will present and analyse my data both quantative-ly and

qualitat ively in an attempt to remain the best of both approaches.

However, there is a natural bias for qualitative analysis especially

because my sample is relatively small.

Results:

Although the research is ongoing and this extended abstract is based

on an unfinished analysis, there is a clear indication that private

higher education has a considerable potential to empower the Sri

Lankan youth especially given the extremely limited opportunities

available at the state universities. Among my informants, those who

were students/products of the state university system were hostile


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towards the opening/legitimizing/strengthening of private higher

education system mainly on the understanding that it could result in

the deterioration of the quality and the standard of educationprovided by the state universities thereby disempowering the

students of those establishments who enter them though an

extremely rigorous and competitive process. A fear as to the loss of

privileged status enjoyed by the Sri Lankan university graduate

community is also implicit. While some of the criticisms of private

higher education remain unwarranted, others remain valid especiallythe doubt as to whether the commercialisation of education resulting

from privatization could lower the overall academic standards of the

Sri Lankan higher educational qualifications.

Discussion:

The discussion segment of the research will feature further analysis of

the various perspectives. The core argument will be that the private

higher education will empower the Sri Lankan youth as long as

quality in teaching and research is maintained and as long as there is

close monitoring of how these institutions operate. At the same time,

the government should address the danger of a feasible decline in the

academic standards of government universities resulting from the

strengthening of the private higher education industry. Interestingly,

various informants, throughout the course of interviews, asserted

their disillusionment with the deficiencies in the public

administration of the country including the higher education and

doubted the extent to which quality assurance would work in the Sri


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tysoS by< isg my


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^wd&' ;siajirl hq oaOhla ksufuka wk;=rej furg ish cd;Skaw;r iq yo;djhla jOkh lsu i|yd lghq;= ls u w;s Yhskajeo.;af' ixialD;sl ixf;djhla we;s lsu ;=


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wfmalaId lrk wdldrfhka tu NdId wjfndaOh fkd,efnk nekaisiqkaf.a iyNd.S;ajh wjuu i|yd n,md ;sf' YajoHd, isiqkabx.%Sismka;s i|yd iyNd.su wjuu i|yd fya;= idol lsys mhlan,md we;s nj ykd.; yelsh' tk YajoHd, isiqkaf.kanyq;rhla bx.%Sis NdIdj bf.kq.kq ,nka fka ;ukag wkd.;fhaoS/lshd fj


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t


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Development and Progress


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Importance of Public-Private-Non-Profit Partnership at Sub-

National Level for Post-War Regional Development in Sri Lanka

N. Sivakumar, H. U. S. Pradeep and S. Rasnayake

[email protected]

Date of research: August 2011 December 2011

Introduction

The last three decades has been the bloodiest in Sri Lankan history.

The ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka turned into a full-fledged civil war in

1983 came to an end with the military defeated of the LTTE in May

2009. The war incurred the toil of the many thousands of deaths and

immeasurable human suffering. Also it damaged and destroyed the

infrastructure as well as other economic structure too. There are many

development activities need to be done in war ravaged areas. For this

purpose proper decentralization and adequate resources are pre-

required at sub-national level. But, there are ongoing debate related

with devolved power at sub-national level. Indeed many countries

adopted public-private-non-profit partnership as an approach to

achieve the regional development. Through this study researchersfound that, the public-private-nonprofit partnership at sub-national

level could be an alternative solution meant for post-war regional

development in Sri Lanka.


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matters into consideration, this study tried to find the answers to

research question of why public-private-non-profit partnership

important at sub-national level of Sri Lanka meant for post-warregional development?

Objectives

1. To explore the importance of public-private-non-profit

partnerships in term of post-war regional development in Sri

Lanka.2. To produce the credible evidence from globe in relation to

importance of public-private-non-profit partnerships meant for

regional development.

Significance of the Study

Without peace there cannot be sustainable development; meaning it is

very difficult to establish enduring peace without proper

reconstruction and development in war ravaged areas. Indeed, post-

war regional development seems as governance as well political

issues in Sri Lanka. Very limited studies done related with this issue.

This study aimed to file the gap also intended to propose alternative

approach meant for post-war regional development in war ravaged

provinces in Sri Lanka.


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Research Methodology

The study used the qualitative method to analyze and interpret the

data. The Non-probability sampling (purposive sampling) has been

used for primary data collection. The data gathered by using primary

and secondary sources. Primary data collected from think-tank

(Academician and Lawyers) using in-depth interview. Content

analysis took place intended for secondary data collection.

Accordingly data collected from the relevant existing literatures such

as books, previous research works, seminar papers, reports, journal

and relevant official website of provincial council, private and non-

profit sector.

Findings and Core Argument in Brief

The concept of decentralization is not new phenomena in Sri Lanka.

Numerous attempts have been undertaken over the years. Though

effective, powerful and decentralized local government has not yet

evolved in Sri Lanka. Indeed, sub-national governments are expected

to work on post-war regional development meant. Adequateresources, institutional capacity are pre-required for this agenda.

North and Eastern Provincial Councils are unable to deal with the

post-war regional development agenda without assistance from

bottom-level as well top-level too. Many reasons are behind in this

scenario. Among those reasons limited resources is key one.

Therefore, the Provincial Council has to adopt an alternative


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approach to make arrangement to getting thing done towards post-

war regional development. Accordingly specially designed projects

with specific objectives are being implemented in the easternprovince with the assistance under international economic

cooperation in collaboration with relevant stakeholders at national

and provincial levels to getting things done towards regional

development.

Public-private-non-profit partnership implies a common

understanding of shared goals, a willingness to repartitionresponsibilities for their achievement. Since the 1990s, there has been

a rapid rise of public-private-non-profit partnerships across the

world. Indeed many developing countries have initiated public-

private-non-profit partnerships in various sectors including

infrastructure, manufacturing and services. Public-private-non-profit

partnerships do not end with players only from the public sector or

government agencies. Rather, management of public sector programs

involves a wide range of players from both the for-profit and

nonprofit sectors. Therefore, this partnership can be contributed for

post-war regional development in war ravaged areas in Sri Lanka.

Recommendation or Freshness of Idea

1. In reality, the model adopted in the devolution of power in Sri

Lanka places the centre in a dominant position in the context of

Centre Provinces relations.


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Issues in Post-war Indo-Sri Lanka Relations: A Sri Lankan

Perspective

Thiyagaraja Waradas

[email protected]

Date of Research : July 2011- January 2012

The Specific Issue

The study examines the efforts taken by different stakeholders to

solve the issue between Sri Lankan Northern Fishermen and Indian

Fishermen. These issues emerged due to the threat posed by Indian

trawler net fishers poaching in to Sri Lankan waters soon after the

end of the war between Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation

Tigers of Tamil Ealam.

The Core Argument

There are three approaches in practice to solve the issue. Firstly, state

level intervention initiated by India and Sri Lanka called the Joint

Working Committee. Secondly, fishermen to fishermen dialogueinitiated by Sri Lankan fishermen and they signed an agreement with

their counterparts in South India with the support of civil society.

Thirdly and the most recent approach is to establish an Interactive

Joint Working Platform (IJWP), which accommodate both two levels

in one platform.


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All these approaches suggest autonomous and isolated manner of

intervention. These separate isolated attempts inherently reduce the

strength of its capacity in solving issues which are rooted in different

levels which seeks multilevel interventions. The first two approaches

are less sensitive to the political and economic factors of the conflict.

State level intervention is not linked with the grass root level needs of

the people. Moreover, all of them are lacking a strong implementation

mechanism.

It is crucial to take in to account the following factors in any attempt

to find a solution. It includes regional and extra regional relations of

these countries and their regimes relationship with their citizens,

economically, regional capitalism with neighboring small powers. An

environmental aspect is also important to ensure the future of fishing

and marine resources.

Importance and Relevance of the Research

About 2000 Indian trawler boats engage in fishing within 210

kilometers coastal line in Palk Bay. Due to this Sri Lanka is losing 5

billion Sri Lankan rupees of annual income from its marine resources.

This is not only an economic and political issue, but also it destroys

the entire marine wealth of the country by using banned trawler nets.

It threatens the future livelihood of 30,000 fisher families in Northern

Province of Sri Lanka.


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Indian Trawler fishermen damage equipment of Sri Lankan

fishermen and prevent them from fishing. Vulnerability created by

this situation is directly related to post-war peace building and

reconstruction of war torn region. The Indian trawler fishermen issue

has became an urgent and crucial issue that needs to be addressed by

both respective governments. Therefore, this paper would focus on

Indian Trawler fishermen issue and Indo- Sri Lankan relations in a

post- war era.

Innovativeness or Freshness of the Idea, Solutions and the

Approach

The issue requires a multi-track program. It includes a link betweensubalterns and the state, strong implementation mechanisms and

political solution of both countries. This may draw a road map to find

a gradual solution, which is based on the real economic, political and

environmental needs of the people of both countries. Thus ensuring

the grievances of the Northern Fishermen are being heard and build

more trust in democratic way of peaceful conflict resolution. In other

words this is neither top bottom approach nor bottom- up approach.

It suggests a multi-track approach which includes a collective team

play of all kinds of stakeholders.


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Methodology

This study involves positivist and post- positivist methodology which

includes both qualitative and quantitative research methods. It is

based on data collected through qualitative interviews of

stakeholders in different levels, such as, policy makers, activists,

community leaders and subalterns and an archival research.

Potential Impact of the Current Research for Change

The research widens the existing debate on the issue by articulating

the Sri Lankan fishermens perspective. Moreover, it contributes the

policy dialogue through the suggestions arrived at through the

research.

References

Books

Jayasinghe, W.T. (2002). Indo-Ceylon Relations: The Politics of

Immigrant Labours, Stamford Lake, Pannipitiya, Sri Lanka.

Jayawardene, A. (2004). Documents on Sri Lanka s Foreign Policy

1947 - 1965, Regional Centre for Strategic Studies, Colombo, Sri

Lanka.

Nissanka, H.S.S. (1984). Sri Lankas Foreign Policy: A Study in Non -

Alignment, Vikas, New Delhi, India.


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Sahul Hameed, A.C. (1988). Foreign Policy Perspectives of Sri Lanka:

Selected Speeches 1977-1987, Lakehouse Investments Limited,

Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Vernon, L.B. (1983). Foreign Relations of Sri Lanka from earliest times

to1965, Tisara Prakasakayo Limited, Dehiwela, Sri Lanka.

News Papers

Sunday Observer, 2010.08.22 and 2010.08.29,

Lankadeepa, 2011.03.16.

Websites

Suryanarayan, V. (2010). Indias Bilateral Agreements and Centre

State Relations A Perspective from Tamil Nadu, South Asia

Analysis Group,http://www.southasianalalysis.org/%5Cpapers37%5Cpaper3655.ht

ml (accessed 03.03.2011)

Other Documents

Petition submitted to the Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka on

15th March 2011 by Alliance of Northern Province Fisher Peoples

Text of Agreement between Indian and Sri Lankan Fishermen

representatives who met at St. Thomas Mount, Chennai, India, From

20th to 22nd August 2010.

Vivekanandan, V. (2010), Multi-level dialogue to find solution to

trans-border fishing on the Indo-Sri Lankan border, SIFFS, India.


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Youth in Sri Lanka


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The Youth Vote: A Hope for Democracy

Navam Niles

[email protected]

This research paper will focus on the importance of youth voting and

the involvement of youth in policy processes in Sri Lanka. The post-

war situation in Sri Lanka has provided the youth voting bloc - those

between ages 18 and 24 - with the opportunity to play an important

part in the social, economic and political priorities of the nation.

Previously, discussions regarding key socio-economic issues were

crowded-out by various other concerns, especially that of national

security. However, as the nation begins changing its priorities

towards economic and social development, youth participation is not

only important but essential for the demographic in particular and

the nation in general. The current economic indicators are not very

encouraging as youth unemployment remains relatively high while

the education system in the country struggles to empower youth with

the necessary skills for a globalised economy. Moreover, the faith of

youth in social and political institutions is also arguably decreasing

and this sentiment is reflected in the countrys poor internationalrankings in areas such as corruption, economic freedom and political

stability. Therefore, it is important to focus the attention on two key

areas of study: firstly, the factors that could influence the mobilisation

of the youth demographic with regard to greater involvement in

political discourse; secondly, the key programmes that could be used

to enhance the youth participation in the political processes. This


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paper will examine the existing body of literature concerning the

voting behaviour of the youth and the various international

programmes initiated by particular countries and internationalinstitutions such as the United Nations (UN) to facilitate greater

youth participation in political activities. The objective would be to

identify and evaluate methods relevant to Sri Lanka. Accordingly,

this paper will seek to argue that the main reason for the lack of

enthusiasm on the part of youth with regards to voting and political

participation is not so much the lack of interest in political affairs, butthe lack of information and opportunities to meaningfully engage in

the social, economic, and political discourse. Moreover, it will also

argue that the failure of political parties to engineer political,

economic and social policies that appeal to a wider youth

demographic will almost invariably lead to political instability and

increasing levels of political extremism within the youth

demographic.

Bibliography

Central Intelligence Agency. (2011). The world factbook - South Asia - Sri

Lanka. Retrieved 1 5, 2011, from CIA:

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-

factbook/geos/ce.html


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Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance. (n.d.). IDEA voter

turn out . Retrieved 12 5, 2011, from IDEA:

http://www.idea.int/vt/country_view.cfm?CountryCode=LK

Lintelo, D. t. (2011). Youth and Policy Processes. Future Agricultures.

Ray Carlos, D. D. (2004). Youth Voting Behaviour. Indiana State

University .

The Heritage Foundation. (n.d.). Sri Lanka. Retrieved 12 5, 2011, from

Heritage: http://www.heritage.org/index/country/SriLanka

Transparency International . (2011). Corruption Perceptions Index 2011 .

Transparency International .


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Capturing Gandhiji's Attention: A History of a Youth Movement in

Colonial Ceylon

Niyanthini Kadirgamar

[email protected]

The history of Sri Lanka in the last century is rich with many youth-

led struggles. Commencing with the upsurge of a resistance to

imperial rule in pre-independence Ceylon, the youth have organizedthemselves to lobby for change in the political, economic and social

spheres of the country. Whilst what was envisioned and

enthusiastically propagated by these movements as desirable

conditions for the country, were never achieved in their entirety and

even brutally crushed in certain instances, the youth have shaped the

course of the history of this country.

This paper is part of an ongoing research on the history of the youth

movement in Sri Lanka and focuses on the early years of youth

activism in colonial Ceylon. It explores why the youth of that time

decided to take on a different path to that of their older political

leaders during the final struggles for independence from colonial

rule. It also looks at how it shaped public opinion and created an

impact on the politics of that time. Particular focus is given to

Gandhijis visit to Ceylon i n 1927 and the events surrounding his

visit.


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When signs of communal rifts started showing within the older

political leadership of the country in the early 1900s, the youth began

organizing themselves into leagues to express their discontent of theolder political leaders and to pave the way for the establishment of a

Ceylon of their dreams. Focusing on the Youth Congress, Jaffna and

youth leagues in the South, this paper discusses the issues that were

taken up by the youth and the ideologies that propelled them to do

so. While the youth were in the forefront of the Nationalist Movement

at that time, greatly influenced by the Gandhian Movement in Indiathey refused to go along the lines of communalism that was

developing amongst the older generation. Instead there is an

interesting convergence when many of them formed and joined the

Left Movement at that time.


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Minorities: Place and Belonging


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Life Changes of Migrants

I.D.G. Dharmasinghe

[email protected]

Date of Research: January 2009 January -2011

Specific Area of Research

This study focuses on the changes in lifestyle of the Tamil internal

migrants who moved from Jaffna to Wellawatte (Colombo) since

2005, as a result of the war. The research examines how they have

shaped their lives in the new social and economic context.

Core Argument

Traditionally, the fates of displaced and migrant populations have

been shaped either through government assistance or through their

own means. In this paper, it is my intention to highlight the efforts

made by the latter category to rebuild their lives following protracted

migration. In general, instead of integrating into existing

communities, the migrants seek to establish separate spaces which aresocially and culturally distinct.

I will focus on the ways and means through which the Tamil

population from Jaffna has placed their lives within the new context,

which has been shaped by various factors and internal changes in

their lives. Specifically, I will engage in an analysis of the notion of


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Home and the potential for return within the context of

migration or displacement in Sri Lankas post -war social settings.

I argue that the efforts made by these internal migrants who settled

down in this environment in order to avoid facing changes, have

resulted in a new order in the Wellawatte area and their lives. Even

though the opportunities in this new environment have prevented

them from returning to where they came from, they still maintain

their sense of home - Jaffna whilst living in little Jaffna

(Wellawatte).

Importance and Relevance

In Sri Lanka, there are thousands of people who have migrated

internally during the war. Some people have migrated to urban areas,and others to rur al areas. However, with the end of the war, a return

to normal life is expected from everyone in the country.

(Re)settlement plays a major role in the context of post war

reconciliation and it has been articulated as returning home.

Therefore, it is important to focus on resettlement due to the complex

and varying factors in lives of the migrant population who have

directly suffered from the war.

In this context, it is known that the current regime is engaging in

development projects claiming that dev elopment is the answer for

the North and the East. Conversely, there is a discourse that holds

that large scale destruction has taken place in certain areas in the


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name of development projects which has resulted in the removal of

memories which are symb olic of a Tamil homeland. This action

eliminates the one particular force that challenged the Sinhala idea of animaginary homeland, a notion referred to as Lakdiva. In this context, it is

important to examine the opinions and perspectives of the affected

people with regard to to return and what it signifies to them.

Methodology

This study is based on an extensive review of literature and in

particular, on the findings of the research conducted for my BA

degree in 2009. After the war I revisited the areas in question and

conducted interviews in order to gain an understanding of matters

relating to return. The sample of the study was 30 Tamil people who

moved from Jaffna to Wellawatte after 2005; and I interviewed them

using the snow-ball sampling method. The interpretive approach will

be deployed as the methodology of this research. Accordingly, this

research tries to improve our knowledge of the social world based on

the understanding of people and the explanation given by them to

phenomena through their inter-subjective experience.

Potential Impact

A main objective of this study is to expand the existence of socio-

political knowledge on internal migration.


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Violation of Individual Rights of Persons from Plantation Sector in

Obtaining Personal Documents: A Case Study from the Badulla

District

Fahurdeen Sajeed Ahamed

[email protected]

Brief Background of the Problem

It is a common scenario in the plantation sector that at least 25% or

more of the people are neither not in a position of Personal

Documents, most importantly Birth certificates. There are two

methods adopted by the government to register the birth, death and

to provide NICs. Due to the non availability of personal documents

many of the youths, including the adults do not have the right to

vote, to obtain a proper employment, difficult to obtain the services

and welfare facilities provided by the state. Compensation, rights of

land and property, to enter in to schools and education schemes are

among them.

Core Argument in Brief

The one of the main reasons not to be in possession of the personal

documents is because of the structure of the plantation sector and the

current laws and procedures related to personal documents. The

method used for the registration of birth in the plantation sector is

different from the other and the process is more difficult compared to

the other. Its discriminatory that the citizens of one state treated in


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two different methods, with regard to the same service. Thus the

procedure makes it more complicated to obtain those documents and

due to the collapse of the original estate mechanism, i.e. closure of theestates, which made it difficult to track the history of records due to

loss of records.

Importance and Relevance of Research

The problem is there for a long time and due to this problem many

youths, especially females are living in the estates, uneducated and

they have less opportunity to enjoy their rights and there are many

instances of violation of their rights. In the post conflict context,

where there is a primary focus is in developing the country, I think

there is a need to address the issues of these people who have many

problems in accessing the welfare schemes proposed by the

government.

Innovativeness or Freshness of Idea, Solution or Approach

Through the identification of the causes of the problem the people

will have the opportunity to enjoy their civil and political rights

without any hindrance. This will enormously benefit them in

supporting the country, building trust and confidence in the system

and ultimately for a better country.


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Methodology

The primary data will be collected through face to face interviewswith the people in the estates (approximately 50 people will be

interviewed) and government officials. This will be more of a

qualitative analysis of the issue.

At the same time, questionnaires will be also used to get the feedback

from the people. Approximately 50 people will be interviewed. (Thiswill be a more of a quantitative approach)

A library survey will be undertaken. The existing domestic laws and

procedures will be evaluated. Further, a comparison will be made

between the domestic laws and the international obligation. Experts

on the subject will be interviewed too.

Data analysis: The primary data and the secondary data will be

analyzed with the Human Rights and constitutional standards to

assess whether the individual rights to obtain personal documents of

the people in the plantation sector of the country has been violated

Policy Recommendations If Any

It is planned to recommend the Government and other stakeholders

about the changes that is required to be made to the existing law and

to improve other conditions to ensure that each individual is in

possession of the documents.


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Potential Impact of Research for Change

A proper mechanism for the registration of births and to issue other

personal documents will be introduced in the plantation sector. Allthe youths in the estates will have personal documents through this

initiative.


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Environmental Concerns and

Challenges


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The Impact of the War on Water Resources and Its Implications for

Post-War Sri Lanka

W.A.Upul Wickramasinghe.

[email protected]

Date of Research: September 2011 to January 2012

The specific issue: The effect of the war on water resources and the

quality of the water in the Jaffna district.

Core argument:

Research has shown that water resources such as tanks, wells,streams etc have been severely damaged during conflict. This has led

to the lack of water which can be used. Also deforestation and

damage to natural flora and biota was generally observed, which may

have a long-term effect on water resources. At the same time, due to

the armed conflict, potable water is polluted due to the presence of

mines as well as due to the release of chemicals in to the environment.

The return of refugees to their places of origin has led to an over-

exploitation of resources to meet food and energy needs.

Furthermore, munitions that have not been defused and unexploded

mines contaminate the soil and water in the long run. The pollution of

rivers and lakes also occurs when the human bodies that are


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deposited in them begin to decompose. Unofficial reports suggest

that close to 40000 people were killed during the final stage of the war

in Sri Lanka and due to this there is a large possibility that this willresult in the above mentioned impact on the water resources in

Northern and Eastern provinces.

The resettlement of internally displaced people in their places of

origin and the provision of necessary facilities and infrastructure has

been a huge challenge for the Government in post-war Sri Lanka.

However, environmental considerations fall by the wayside and as a

result poorly placed or badly designed latrines or medical facilities

contaminate water and soil. In some cases, the environmental impacts

of these practices come become apparent only a long period of time

after the dismantling of refugee camps. Thus it is essential that policy

makers consider potential environmental impacts when planning andimplementing the solutions.

Relevance to theme:

In the context of post-war, the economic and environmental

governance in war-affected areas has collapsed or is malfunctioning.

This will lead to the breakdown of waste collection arrangement

which in turn will result in the contamination of water resources and

the risk of contracting infectious diseases. Generally because of the

humans behaviors, environment gets severely damaged. The

situation would be more serious in the post-war context with the


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additional impact of the war. Thus the protection of environment

would be very important but at the same time would be a huge

challenge.

The damage of these processes will have a larger impact on the future

generation rather than the present one. In other words youth and

children will be the main victims of this. Moreover it is widely

acknowledged that any social group has a right to participate in the

decision-making processes on issues that affect them. Therefore,

particularly youth voices are more progressive in producing

alternative ways to address this issue. Thus empowering youth

participation would be a further step in social transformation.

Relevance to the Post-war context:

Most of the scholars, analysts, researchers and activists are analyzing

and criticizing the political, social and economical impacts of the war.

But it is hard to find the analysis or critics about the environmental

effects of the war in Sri Lanka. Careful analysis shows that there are a

number of impacts of war on the environment: water, air, soil and

natural flora and biota. Among the disastrous consequences of the

war; the destruction of infrastructure, the pollution of water supplies,

the poisoning of soils and fields, the destruction of crops and forests,

the over- exploitation of natural resourcesetc can take place. The

effect of these changes can be either short- term or long-term.

Destroying the environment means destroying ourselves, since the


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existence of the humans and environment is interdependent. After

the armed conflict, assessments about the damage to the human

beings and properties are carried out, but unfortunately theassessments of the impact on the environment are yet to be

considered seriously in Sri Lanka. There are lot of examples that can

be found from all over the world about the negative influence of war

on environment such as, conflict in Jammu and Kashmir, armed

conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel, Lebanonetc.

Innovativeness and Solutions:

The most important thing is, within this two and half year period of

time (post-war period), there has been no comprehensive research

that has been carried out to assess the impact of armed conflict on

environment particularly on water resources. So that, as the first thing

it is essential to carry out a comprehensive and in-depth research

which covers all the water resources in the affected areas.

Then it is possible to carry out a comparative analysis with the other

areas of the country and if possible with the previous research which

has been carried out in the same areas before the war.

Ensure more Northern youth participation in decision-making

processes and reforming mechanisms of participation accordingly.

This would build trust in democratic process among Northern youth.

Thus there will be no room for undemocratic ways of emancipating

politics.


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Methodology:

This study involves both positivist and post-positivist traditions of

knowledge productions. Methods such as sample analysis, statistical

analysis, Interviews and archival research have been used in this

research.

Policy recommendations:

Draft and declare a comprehensive National policy on water resource

management. This policy should encapsulate voices of marginalized

groups including youth.

Take steps to raise the awareness among individuals about thequality of water.

Make more accessible portable water to public.

Potential impact of research for change:

This study is a contribution to the existing knowledge of water

resource management.

Raise public awareness about the finding of the research by sharing it

with different social groups.


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Ensure that the youth voices are been heard in research on issues

which affect them.

Provide an alternative vision for marginalized ideas to mobilize for

better water resources.


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Youth Voice: The Missing Link in Sri Lankas Environmental

Discourse

Thiagi Piyadasa

[email protected]

This paper is part of an ongoing research that aims to understand and

evaluate the ro le of young people in Sri Lankas environmental

discourse. In a context where economic development is presented as

the keystone to reconciliation and reconstruction that can be achieved

by promoting and strengthening specific industries such as tourism,

environmental concerns emerge as critical issues for consideration

and action. Therefore, the first part of this paper analyzes the

National Strategy for Sri Lanka Tourism 2009 -2012 in light of a claim

made by the same document aiming to make tourism the largest

foreign exchange earner benefiting the stakeholders of tourism and

the peoples of Sri Lanka 1.

The paper specifically looked at two key tourist development projects

in Kalpitiya and Negombo, to determine to what extent these projectshave benefited the stakeholders of tourism and the peoples of Sri

Lanka. The analysis found that while the strategic plan highlights the

sustainability of all tourist projects, issues relating to employment

generation, land grab and compensation, displacement of homes and

livelihood are some of the negative by-products of these projects.

1 National Strategy for Sri Lanka Tourism 2009-2012, p. 10.


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There are several issues that have to be resolved, for it is not clear

how the State understands and applies the concept of sustainable

tourism, neither have they made it clear as to who the stakeholdersof tourism are. In practice it appears that the local community has

been excluded as stakeholders. The analysis is also informed by

scholarly work which shows that while tourism usually promises to

provide employment to the local community, the jobs that are created

are mostly unskilled, menial and poorly paid, partly due to the issue

of structural inadequacies within developing countries to ensure thatbenefits of tourism and development trickle down to the masses 2.

The second part of the paper, which is ongoing, aims to look

specifically at the role of youth in environmental law, and what

implications this would have on the environmental discourse in Sri

Lanka, especially in light of the issues raised in the first part of the

paper. International instruments governing environmental law

emphasis the need for sustainable 3 consumption and utilization of

resources. Viewed from a rights perspective, this paper seeks to argue

that the emphasis on the rights of the future generation within

environmental law and principles, inherently make it the business of

young people to take a more active role in voicing concerns on

environmental issues, and taking action regarding the same.

2 Britton 1982: 336 in Martin Mowforth and Ian Munt. Tourism and Sustainability:Development, Globalisation and New Tourism in the Third World. Routledge: New

York, 2009. p.53.


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The lack of opportunity for youth engagement in environmental

issues is a gap in policy and practice that should be addressed at

formal and informal levels. As the country emerges from a protracted

war, it is imperative that all citizens feel they have a role to play in

determining their future. Deprivation and competition over limited

resources could, if not controlled at the onset, lead to renewed conflict

between communities competing for limited resources.

Research methods included literature reviews of policy documents,

existing documentation of campaigns, websites and news articles,

information materials used to raise awareness among the local

communities in Negombo and Kalpitiya, and presentations, talks and

interviews by activists and the local community.


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Representation and Articulation


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Performativity and Performance: An Analysis of the Portrayal of

Gender Identity of Women in Plays Written By Sri Lankan

Playwrights

Sabreena Niles

[email protected]

Performativity and performance are b oth social and artistic concepts

that function in dance, theatre and drama (Kolk, 8). This statement

extracted from the article on Performing Gender in Arabic/African

Theatre concisely presents the basis of this research paper and also

sheds light on the interest of the researcher in theatre and particularly

plays written by Sri Lankan playwrights.

According to Richard Schechners Performance Theory, drama is not

just something that occurs on stage, but something full of meaningoperating on many levels in everyday life (Wetsel). Therefore, the

performance on a stage is a reflection of life itself, and the roles

assumed within the space of a theatre also portray the function of

gender roles in society.

Thus the stage, or the space in which an actor/actress performs,

becomes the platform for the depiction of the different aspects of the

play, and in a broader context, the representation of life itself.

Theatre is a public institution, a theatre -performance a public event.

On stage the theatre-makers offer their vision on the cultural and

social conditions of a society and negotiate, so to say, with their

audience (changing) norms and values of this society (Kolk, 8).


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Thus this research paper analyses the manner in which Sri Lankan

playwrights have portrayed the gender identity of women in their

plays. The primary data included in this research are plays written byRuwanthie de Chickera, Senaka Abeyratne and Sivamohan Sumathy.

This paper limits itself to analyzing the written plays as the research

finds its relevance in the content of the plays and the attempts made

by the playwrights to utilize the stage to present the gender identity

of Sri Lankan women.

This research article bases itself on the premise that Sri Lankan

playwrights, who contextualize their plays within Sri Lanka and

utilize Sri Lankan characters in their plays, would portray gender

identity, particularly, of Sri Lankan women. It is also assumed that

the playwrights would attempt to establish a link between

performances and performativity in order to delve into the nuances ofan identity that is influenced by the cultural, political, economical and

social aspects of Sri Lanka and therefore perhaps portray a gender

identity that is authentic to Sri Lankan women. In exploring this

hypothesis the researcher hopes to address the following questions;

How do the playwrights portray the gender identity of Sri Lankan women on

stage?

How do the playwrights employ various theatrical techniques used in a

performance in order to bring to surface the nuances of performing gender

identity in society?


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Judith Butler in her Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of

Identity discusses the manner in which for feminist theory, the

development of language that fully or adequately represents womenhas seemed n ecessary to foster the political visibility of women and

proceeds to emphasize on how the the very subject of women is no

longer understood in stable or abiding terms (2). Thus this research

paper finds its significance in viewing the theatre as a medium and a

language that fully and adequately represents women in which the

subject of the woman is portrayed while acknowledging that it is nolonger a stable or abiding term. This argument is further developed

through the opinion that image and self -image can come together

and identity is no longer a fixed phenomenon but a pluralistic

concept, fluid and continually shifting in a changing cultural

landscape (Kolk, 7). Thus the gender identity of women is subject to

change, as the roles performed by women are reflective of the

perceptions and attitudes of society which contribute to the

development of the multifaceted and multifunctional role played by

women.

Judith Butler, in defining her concept of performativity, argues that

gender proves to be pe rformance that is, constituting the identity itis purported to be. In this sense, gender is always a doing, though not

a doing by a subject who might be said to pre- exist the deed (Salih,

55). This research expands on this concept of performativity and its

link with performance or portrayal of gender roles in the theatre.

Kolk Mieke contributes to this argument, particularly in terms of

gender roles, and opines that it is these forms of agency, that are


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searched for and reflected in drama and theatre: in subversive forms

of femininity and masculinity and in the crossing of boundaries of

what can be made visible in a cultural community (9).

The research also employs feminism, post-colonialism,

psychoanalysis and other sociological theories relevant to the field of

study. Therefore this interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary

approach will be utilized to enhance the exploration of the hypothesis

and research questions which will in turn enrich the research as a

whole.

The researcher hopes to engage with the presentations of gender

roles, stereotyping, traditional representations of women, power

relations and other aspects imperative in the analysis of gender

identity and its portrayal on a stage. This research paper seeks to

analyze plays that deal with disparities based on class, ethnicity and

economic status and other features that can be identified in society.

The plays selected for this research delve into contemporary issues

faced by youth and the struggles and also challenges present both

during the ethnic conflict and in the post-war context. The research

attempts to examine the manner in which the gender identity of

women is portrayed within a framework of this nature which brings

to surface issues which are relevant to Sri Lankan audiences.

Thus this research grapples with concepts that contribute to the

making of gender identity of women in Sri Lanka through grasping

the essence of the plays and thereby the significance of performances

both on stage and in society at large.


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The Sri Lankan IDP as Portrayed by the Media in Sri Lanka.

Sachee Ranaweera

[email protected]

The Sri Lankan civil war which lasted over 20 years ended in May

2009. As a nation, Sri Lanka has been waiting for this moment in

history and at a time such as this, the focus of the public was on the

media for reports of the war. As the reporting was being done, one

group of people highlighted were the Internally Displaced Persons

(IDPs). This paper is an attempt to bring out their identity/identities

as portrayed in the media. Sunday Observer, Daily News, Daily

Mirror and Tamilnet.com have been used as primary data sources, in

order to analyze the ways in which the identity of the IDP has been

portrayed in the media.

This paper is an attempt to analyze the primary data using a multiple

analysis. Moreover, it attempts to answer the research questions, how

and why the ID