| Popis: |
SINCE SRI LANKA'S DEVASTATING OUTBREAK of ethnic carnage in July 1983, communal opinions in the nation have stiffened to the point of total obduracy. As the conflict increasingly took on the characteristics of a civil war, casualties among both armed combatants and civilians increased dramatically, bringing grief and still further alienation. No one in Sri Lanka has been left unaffected. The relatively bright economic prospects of the early 1980s have soured rapidly for the average citizen, accompanied by hardship and uncertainty. I have been struck by the variety of ways in which these apocalyptic times have manifested themselves. In the Sinhalese south, the last few years have been so wearying and so exhausting that reasonable discussion about the communal crisis is difficult to conduct, even between some of the literati and in the privileged classes. For example, there is now an almost total absence of opportunity to discuss this issue in the universities, and not infrequently one encounters "scholarship" shamelessly used to reinforce partisan views. Likewise, local research and advocacy groups (such as the Centre for Society and Religion, the Committee for Rational Development, the International Centre for Ethnic Studies, and the Marga Institute) that have done good work attempting to present balanced assessments and possible solutions are themselves increasingly under attack. Some critics claim such groups are elitist, or funded from abroad and therefore harmful to the cultural welfare of the Sinhalese, or that Sri Lanka's universities have the necessary brains-trust of social scientists and experts to give responsible commentary and intellectual and policy direction without interference. Such are the reactions of a lonely and isolated people. Nonetheless, with this in mind I fully concur with a quiet observation recently made to me by the Right Reverend Swithin Fernando, retired Anglican Bishop of Colombo, who noted that the Sinhalese need fraternity and not constant criticism in their time of trial. Research conducted on the communal issue needs to be informative but constructive in aim and design. |
