My visit to Sri Lanka a few weeks ago was very different to my past visits. I have traveled to Sri Lanka for meetings with the Department of Elections several times over the past three years. IFES has been implementing a program to computerize the voter registry in Sri Lanka since 2005. But this time was different. The civil war that has been raging in Sri Lanka for well over three decades had just ended. In Colombo, firecrackers were being lit, sweets distributed and people dancing in the streets. There was jubilation and a collective sense of relief. The Tamil population in Sri Lanka, however, did not see this as an end to their woes. They questioned whether the end of the war would bring equality and justice to all citizens of Sri Lanka or whether the cause of equality will be buried deep into the ground for decades to come.
I was watching pictures of the Tamil separatist leader’s dead body flash on TV repeatedly the week of May 18th. There were confusing reports from various Sri Lankan authorities. Was he dead or was he still alive? When did he die? And how?
As the newscaster’s debate went on, my mind drifted back to July 1983, when armed mobs of hooligans were ransacking Tamil homes in Colombo, setting them on fire. I was 11 then. Thousands of people were killed and injured. Many thousands lost property and their livelihoods.
That moment of anguish in 1983 transformed the rebels fighting the Sinhala majority government into instant heroes in the eyes of the Tamil population of Sri Lanka. It also reinforced the belief among many Tamils [by no means the majority before then] that Tamils cannot live as equal citizens in Sri Lanka. These July riots enticed many more Tamils to embrace the call for a separate homeland. After a grueling battle that resulted in over 60,000 deaths and assassinations of several leaders, it is hard to believe that the armed battle had ended.
Many had thought a military solution was impossible and that the LTTE, which had held out against the government until this point, were invincible. This was what made the photos of the slain LTTE leader being flashed on TV surreal to many.
People I spoke with on my recent trip to Sri Lanka were wondering what will happen to the hundreds of thousands of civilians being held in military-controlled transition camps. Will they be able to or allowed to return to their homes soon? Now that the war is over, are their lives finally safe? Will they be able to register, take part in elections, and provide their opinion on priorities for re-development of their towns and villages? Will they be free to move around Sri Lanka, free of harassment? These questions plague the minds of those concerned with human rights in Sri Lanka.
The challenge before Sri Lankan society is to get past the rhetoric of the defeated and the victors, and to move on to national reconciliation. Decades of deep-rooted distrust and a sense of an ‘other’ need to be erased. Not a small task. Further, there is very little proven expertise in the world today on how to do this. Models from South Africa and Ireland are being talked about.
The long-term solution, however, is for the government to meaningfully implement the 13th Amendment to the Sri Lankan Constitution, which would devolve powers to Provincial Councils. This devolution should be done in a manner that would ensure equal opportunities for Tamils and other minorities and address their legitimate aspirations. IFES is ready to lend its expertise to support this process in any way it can.
As my flight took off from Colombo airport and flew over the verdant landscape of Sri Lanka I could not help wondering whether Sri Lanka’s reputation as the land of smiles will finally return to this war-torn island I call home.