YES, there is a new approach. All Sri Lankans need to construct their vision of SL, based on knowledge and a bit of research. The difficulty is, not all citizens will be able to devote time. This is where the MEDIA has to play it’s role. Again, there is constraint, in the form “neck-squeezing” (of the Mass media) practiced by the GOSL.

People like you and I, however diverse our views maybe, need to discuss this, even at person to person basis. Communication does not always have to be “Mass”. It could be Interpersonal. The discussion needs to take place at Family level, Work place level, and at the level of the other institutions of society.

regards,

What we need is just this. More dialog in all forums. For long we have been subject to Myths, constructed on the whims of our leaders. I am referring not only to the recent past but also to the Mahavamsa era and even before.

Therefore, what we need to do is to make is an objective audit of the present scenario, generate alternatives, and proceed forward.

To put in a nutshell, my analysis fo the present is as follows:

The GOSL is approaching the probelm only on one front, which is to defeat the LTTE militarily.

The GOSL, is completely ignoring the all important objective of winning over the Tamil people, and enticing them to embrace the idea of one Sri Lanka.
The need of the hour is to Show the Tamils some semblance of a proposal which will satisfy their aspirations. This the GOSL has fialed.

Therefore the end result could well be a case of , DEFEATING THE LTTE, BUT UNABLE TO DEFEAT SEPARATISM. It is the writers opinion that the next phase of the eelam struggle will be a political and non-violent struggle which will be hard to defeat.

American [edited out] solutions experts ARE the biggest obstacle to the discovery of a solution EVERYWHERE including iraq, israel, sri lanka, kosovo, chechnya etc, . that’s exactly what THEY DON’T WANT - SOLUTIONS. In fact in iraq they have created a complelely non existent problem & now spend billions in fighting it. NOBODY HAS THE FAINTEST IDEA WHERE THE OIL & BILLIONS OF $ ARE EVAPORATING TO. THIN AIR!!!

They are fantastic at business & that’s all they want. period.at any cost. That’s why they paid the least during tsunami crisis.

USA are extremely bad friends & very good enemies. [Edited out] while they will kick their colored allies at the drop of a hat to safeguard their interests, they will NEVER forgive or forget their enemies. EX- CUBA, RUSSIA, IRAN, CHINA-(LOVE HATE) etc.

COUNTRIES LIKE SRI LANKA THEY WILL KICK AROUND LIKE A FOOTBALL ACCORDING TO THEIR WHIMS & FANCIES WITHOUT ANY FIRM POLICY.

what they want is a plan to get us into debt thru world bank, impose conditions & squeeze our testacles so they can call the political shots. that’s the name of the game.

anyway who [edited out] wants solutions imposed by outsiders? would u like a powerful rich neighbor of urs to bully u into accepting a domestic solution which u don’t like?

where do u live? we are fighting the world’s most dangerous terrorist org, which is closely linked to Al queda.

what we need is not spiritual thinking, but military superiority. we can think about spirituality after we [defeat the LTTE].

SahaSamvada

I will proceed in stages. Here I address the comments from Deshan and Sinhala-Buddhist.

Deshan does address my overlapping series of questions and does so aggressively by aiming at me and asserting that he became a Sinhalese in the same way that I became a Burgher, et cetera, etcetera. NOW, it would be easy for me to retort by asking him WHY he thought I was a Burgher when I do not consider myself one (and when few in Galle, least of all the venerable Burghers of the Fort quarter, thought my family was Burgher). But this type of verbal fisticuffs gets us nowhere. My intention – one appreciated by some of the others who penned comments – was to underline the complex process (really processes) through which we become Sinhalese, Tamil, Scottish, Japanese, etc.
Though I left it unsaid, it was implicit that not every Sinhalese became Sinhalese in the same way or felt Sinhalese to the same degree at any one point of time (and Shanil demonstrates this dimension in his being and life journey). So let me emphasise that point. By way of illustration let me note that I have been fascinated by the complex story of Greek migrants to Australia over the last 50 years. In my reading from outside their world, it seems that some second and third generation migrants from Greece and its islands identify themselves subjectively as “Australian” – full stop. But yet others of the same generations present themselves as hyphenated-Aussies, namely, “Greek Australian.” And I know one chap from Adelaide who is positively anti-Aussie and thus “Greek” in sentiment.
With necessary adjustments one could make the same contentions for the Italian and other migrants to Australia. Likewise, the diverse bodies of Sri Lankans who have migrated abroad I over the last 50 years have experienced changes in their identity in ways that merit the same introspective examination that I have requested (and which Shanil mentions in passing). In many instances marginalisation within the host society, nostalgia and the ramifications of ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka have heightened the attachments to homeland identity (whether Tamil, Sinhalese or Sri Lankan in different measures) though second and third-generation migrants may not always follow their parents in these sentiments. Arguably some of the most rabid Sinhala and Tamil chauvinists can be found among elements living abroad.
In other words, not all individuals within a named body of people identify staunchly and patriotically with that entity. There are always a few, maybe even more, with whom – and WITHIN whom — collective identity sits lightly.
Though appreciating his intentions I also found Deshan’s clarification of his journey to Sinhala-ness rather shallow in an analytical sense (though not in the sense of sentimental affinity) and also quite oversimplified. He refers to the fact that he and his parents follow “Sinhalese traditions” as one part of his answer. But it was the unpacking of such traditions etc that my question was directed towards. Would every Sinhalese list the same traditions and give all the same weight? It is not just a ‘shopping list’ that I am probing for, but those facets of one’s life world that one is deeply attached to and those moments in memory that remain indelibly inscribed in mind and being in ways that constitute one’s SUBJECTIVITY. The stress on becoming via capitals was meant to underline the depth of feeling that can be associated with ethnic identity for some people, an emotional attachment that is shaped by taken-for-granted practices as much as those stressed, so that body deportment and preferences in coiffeur are among the profound ways of being that constitute collective identity.
Deshan does realise that the war in recent times has sharpened both sets of ethnic identity within Sri Lanka and he is sufficiently open-minded to see that the Tamil sentiments have been “solidified because Tamils feel they are being persecuted.” But, elsewhere, he displays the hegemonic Sinhala notions that have been one of the fundamental causes of conflict in the first place. This occurs (1) when he states that “in some respects Sinhalese is equivalent to Sri Lankan;” and (2) when he adds that it is “the Sinhalese who give the island its uniqueness.”
Significantly, Sinhala Buddhist echoes Deshan in underlining the unique situation of the Sinhalese in relation to the island (albeit with the Vädda people as adjunct-unique) as the foundation for his explicit proclamation of Sinhala Buddhist primacy in the island. Uniqueness becomes the touchstone for political claim to territorial space and nationhood (statehood). Since he also asserts that “the HOME of Tamil is Tamil Nadu,” his contentions in effect suggest that the Tamils of Sri Lanka can bugger off to that country. I have it on good authority that some politicians of the present regime occasionally voice the same idea.
This is colossal blindness, the very stuff of Sinhala chauvinism and one of the inspirations for the Tamil separatist movement (with all its own excesses in reaction and in conflict) in the first instance. It is not only short-sighted and counter-productive, but also PLAIN WRONG.
On reliable information from Tamil friends on both sides of the Palk Strait I stress here that the Tamil dialect spoken in the north of the island and the dialect in the eastern regions (which is different from that of the north) are both distinctively different from that prevailing in southern India. A Sri Lankan Tamil [in the old pre-81 census sense of the term] is immediately identified as such when in Tamilnadu. Sivarasan and Subha (the reserve bomber) found it impossible to merge with the local population after they were identified and on the run after killing Rajiv Gandhi (read Kaarthikeyen and Raju’s book).
As an aside, let me note on the authority of Maya Ranganathan of Chennai and La Trobe University as well as Murali Reddiyar of the Hindu that the Dravidistan movement has been on the outer margins of Tamilnadu politics for 30 years or so despite loud noises in the press occasionally by a tiny minority that happens to be organised. It is only the paranoid attitude of Sinhala extremists that render them into a threatening force and a looming ally of the LTTE. There are self-fulfilling fears at work here and Deshan’s reference to the effect of Tamil invasions caters to extremist mis-judgments and exaggerations.
It is, however, true that stories about such past invasions and the “sädi demalu” and “Kerala Devils” featured in Sinhalese historical representations over many centuries– even prior to the modern era of print technology — in ways that have sustained Sinhala consciousness of self. It may not be entirely surprising that such disparaging epithets enter the Sitavaka Hatana of the late 16th century, but when I found that the phrase sädi demalu (filthy, low and wicked Tamils) entered letters from the Kandyan court to John D’Oyly (agent of the British) in 1811-12, it was one hell of an eye-opener (see Sinhala Consciousness in the Kandyan Period, Yapa Publications, 2004). This was one facet that I tried to clarify in that book.

I completely agree with most of your points. Especially with regard to the hypocrisy of this war from a Buddhist perspective. It is entirely “un-Buddhist” and I speak as one. As for the genetic roots of Sinhalese, I honestly have a clue and the results would not shape my life in any way. It is a reality to which I am apathetic though I can see how it’s a big deal to many people in the country.

Although it’s a seemingly clinical assessment on my part and it’s by no means a justification…what I find rather one sided…is how all this is portrayed as being endemic to “Sinhala Buddhists”. It’s not! Yes in Sri Lanka they are but this also happens in pretty much every multi-racial country in the world, to varying degrees. No religion, unless grossly misinterpreted condones war and killing, so many ethnic majorities have slaughtered and massacred minorities or rival ethnicities. Having grown up in Africa, i’ve seen it happen more times than I can stand. Like i said, forgive me if I sound like i’m protecting these thugs that are called politicians and the large numbers of “my kind” who lust for war as a solution to their problems…. all i’m saying is that what is unfolding and has unfolded in the past is more a microcosm of the problems of humanity itself…

it has got little to do with race itself, had the composition of the population been different, it is very likely the majority would make these same impositions on the minority race(s). Call me narrow but I believe this to be true seeing how people work…especially in Asian cultures.

You have raised an important issue - “How does one BECOME Sinhalese or Tamil in Sentiment? ” I think Charlie, with whom I have interacted many times and would like to call him a friend, put the question simply, ” How do you know you are Sinhalese?” He was, I am sure, not expecting an answer or at least not a simple answer but may have wanted to start a train of thought in the listener. Groundviews readers may wish to refer to discussion on, “Who is a Tamil?” in tamilnation.org. Read it only if you are in a mood for a real chuckle and of course to understand how difficult it is for anyone to answer such questions. Such a question, as you know, does not lead to a definitive answer. It however makes people to analyse, ad infinitum, like those before us have done to add their thoughts for us to review.

The answer to the questions Charlie and you raised lies in the fields of neuropsychology and behaviour, social anthropology, and the social behaviour of Chimpanzees and Gorillas. No pun intended. For an understanding of the first field, the first book I will recommend is the one written, with a lot of diagrams and MRI photos, with the general population in mind, by Rita Carter, Mapping of the Mind, 1998. For those who want to know more recent information, can read more when you google the word - Brain or mind.

With respect to the social behaviour of Chimpanzees, Jane Goodall’s research is the best. I like to quote a few paragraphs from her book, “Reason for Hope -” 1999. I shall take the liberty to reverse the order of the paragraphs to illustrate an answer for the questions, “What makes us Sinhalese or Tamils?” and “How does one become Sinhalese or Tamil in Sentiment?” I shall let the reader relate what Goodall says to our own human communities without my interruptive comments.

Goodall said that, “One of the most significant facts established about human behavior, as it relates to warfare and other acts of violence against conspecifics, is the following; cultural evolution permits the development of pseudospeciation. Pseudospeciation, simply defined, means the transmission of the individually acquired behaviour from one generation to the next within a particular group. Over time this leads to the collective culture (the customs and traditions) of that group. Pseudospeciation (or cultural speciation as I prefer) in humans means, among other things, that the members of one group (the in-group) may not only see themselves as different from members of another group (the out-group), but also behave in different ways to group and non-group individuals. In its extreme form, cultural speciation leads to the dehumanizing of out-group members, so that they may come to be regarded almost as members of a different species. This frees group members from the inhibitions and social actions that operate within the group, and enables them to direct acts toward “those others” which would not be tolerated within the group. Slavery and torture at one end of the scale, ridicule and ostracism at the other.”

“The Gombe chimpanzees quite clearly show the precursors of cultural speciation. Their sense of group identity is strong; they clearly differentiate between individuals who “belong” (to the community) and those who do not. Infants of females who are part of the group are protected while infants of females who do not belong may be killed. This sense of group identity is far more sophisticated than mere xenophobia. The members of the Kahama community had, before the split, enjoyed close and friendly relations with their aggressors; in some cases they had grown up with them and had traveled, feel, played, groomed, and slept together. By separating themselves, it was as though the Kahamans had forfeited their “right” to be treated as group member – instead, they were treated as strangers. And, just as civil wars in our own species can be the most shocking, so it was with the assaults on these onetime friends. All those attacks were brutal, but the worst, for me, was the attack on my old friend Goliath, who had, inexplicably, cast his lot with the southerners. He was so ancient, thin, and frail and utterly homeless. He was trying desperately to hide, crouching under some thick undergrowth, when they found him. He was dragged out, screaming. Five adult males, his former grooming partners, took part in this assault. And an adolescent seized every opportunity to rush in and contribute his own small blows, screaming in excitement. For eighteen minutes they attacked, hitting and biting and dragging, twisting one leg round and round. When they left, with excitement, the old male tried to sit up, but fell back, shivering. Although we searched for him everyday for a week we never saw him again.” (p129)

“Human wars are waged between countries; and between factions within countries – revolutions and civil wars have been among the most brutal of all. The Four-Year War of Gombe chimpanzees could not, of course, measure up to human warfare of this sort, yet it had become clear that the apes were on the very threshold of the otherwise uniquely human achievement. After all, in human history the large-scale deployments of men and weapons did not emerge, fully fledged overnight. Like all our cultural advancements, war evolved gradually over the centuries from primitive Chimplike aggression to the organized armed conflict of today. There are still living groups of indigenous people whose form of warfare is not so different from that of the Four-Year War of the Gombe Chimpanzees – where raiding parties creep into the territory of the next village to kill and plunder.”

“Whilst warfare in its typical human form is a cultural development, certain preadaptations must have existed in our earliest ancestors to permit its emergence in the first place. The most crucial of these would have included cooperative group living and hunting skill, territoriality, use of weapons, and the ability to make cooperative plans. There would also need to have been an inherent fear of hatred of strangers, expressed by aggressive attack. The Gombe Chimpanzees clearly possessed, to a greater or lesser degree, the above qualities. Certainly chimpanzees were aggressively territorial. Not only did they protect their home range from incursion by “strangers” – that is, individuals of either sex (with the exception of adolescent females) from neighboring communities – but they also actively patrolled the boundaries of their home range at least once a week, monitoring the movements of their neighbors. And not only did they defend their territory, they also sometimes enlarged it at the expense of a weaker neighbour. The most likely cause of the Four-Year War at Gombe was the Kasakela males’ frustration at being denied access to an area over which they had roamed until it was occupied by the breakaway community.”(p127).

Now to answer Prof Roberts question directly, my Identity is formed by the genetic and cultural contribution of those from whom I evolved, and more recently from those who formed the cultural speciation of the family and community in which I was born and grew up. That identity is however modified over the years by the sum of my learning and experience in and out of the Island. The first phase gave me my Tamil identity. My experience in other parts of the Island and out of the Island helped me to evolve a “Humane Identity” on top of my Tamil identity. The Humane Identity did not recognize in-groups or out groups, or ‘territorial imperatives’. It abhorred direct and indirect harming of any human. But, as Locke would say, if any person tries to put my family or me under his power, I shall rebel against him. Naturally, by extension, I would do the same if one community anywhere in the world tries to put another community under its own power. In my view, the “humane identity” does not evolve out of thin air. It has as its substratum one or more cultural identities. A cultural identity that does not evolve to a humane identity would stagnate in a blind alley for generations and gradually become extinct like the Neanderthal.

A recent study of the DNA has shown that the blood of the Sinhalese is more closely connected to the blood of people South India. The blood of Tamils of North East is less connected to the blood of the people of South India. It may be shocking to any Sinhalese who brands himself as a “Sinhalese” but the scientific truth is undisputable. Therefore, Sinhalese have a Dravidian origin, not Aryan, as often falsely portrayed !!

Therefore, Sinhalese have more South Indianness and less Sri Lankanness than Tamils of North East.

Looking at Buddhism, I am not a Buddhist but from the bit I have read about Buddhist History in Sri Lanka, King Devanabiya Tissa was a non Buddhist and a lover of hunting animals. Asoka, who was a Buddhist missionery, told the king that it was wrong to kill animals and converted him to Buddhism.

If Asoka came today to Sri Lanka, he would shout and screem at the entire Buddhist clergy and Mahinda Rajapakse saying that it is completely wrong to kill Tamils. He will preach real Buddhism and convert a “Buddhist” to be a real Buddhist.

Strangely, contrary to Buddhist fundamentals, Buddhist monks in Sri Lanka openly support war and killing, indicating that they are not Buddhists. Therefore, what we find in Sri Lanka is not Buddhism but a religion called “Budddhism” and people take advantage out of it.

Resultantly, in “Sinhala- Buddhist” culture, we find those who call themselves “Buddhist Clergy”, have become a brood of vipers, openly violating the basics of Buddhism on killing. Sinhala Historiansn are full of falsehood. Sinhala politicians are dishonest, untruthful and break away any political promises and agreements. Does this not make anyone shameful to say that he is a “Sinhala- Buddhist”? Can the non “Sinhala-Buddhist” ever co exist with such degraded culture?

And while I deplore this government and the general progression of all the chauvinist governments of the past…the records by orgs. I don’t believe that all rights/humanitarian organizations are free of bias and motives either (I work for and study them). But i’m not of the view that the west is trying to taint GOSL’s precious image…

I do not believe in all this ethnic hatred. I think our common enemy is the LTTE AND the Government …not the institution itself…but the cronies and crooks in it…and the hatred and corruption they’ve propagated… Who cares where the Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims came from? The end result is …we have an opportunity to live together and create a peaceful existence for ourselves and our children…..or …argue and kill each other….strangely the latter has been particularly attractive to most on the island….all because each is hung up on racial pride.

I don’t contest that there aren’t very legitimate claims to equality by the tamil minority…but I hold that war achieves nothing…in fact it has only deteriorated the situation and led to the further oppression of the poor, particularly stranded refugees who are caught in all this politics. It is all a vicious cycle.

I think to look at one party and call them terrorists and killers and totally disregard the other is hypocrisy….if the SL Govt practice terrorism…then the LTTE is a similar animal if not worse…combined they have stolen so much …both tangible and intagible..from the masses who blindly support either of them.