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2 Peaceful Means TAMILS  Early 1950s : Federal Party asked that Tamil areas be recognised as a federation within the country  1976 : New political party TAMIL UNITED LIBERATION FRONT asked for a separate independent state  Members believed only this sole option would ensure Tamil rights  Sinhalese government rejected this idea ARMED CONFLICT

3 Violent Means TAMILS  Some angry Tamil youths formed a militant group, the LIBERATION TIGERS OF TAMIL EELAM [LTTE], and resorted to violence  Popularly known as Tamil Tigers, they were considered terrorists ARMED CONFLICT

4 Violent Means TAMILS  Tamil Tigers attacked  Tamil members of the police force  Tamil members and supporters of the ruling party  Tamil politicians who did not support the proposed separate state  The Sinhalese ARMED CONFLICT

5 Violent Means SINHALESE  Sinhalese also showed hostility through violence  Anti-Tamil riots first in 1956, then 1958, 1971, 1977 and 1983  Many killed and injured  Tamils forced to flee for their lives  Unfortunately, such riots were encouraged by the Sinhalese security forces such as the army ARMED CONFLICT

6 Violent Means  1983 riots – thousands fled to Tamil Nadu in South India  Indian government was forced to intervene in the conflict in Sri Lanka  Violence cost thousands of lives  Leads to hatred and distrust  Makes peaceful solutions almost an impossibility  A vicious cycle  Children grow up with prejudices of their racial or religious groups  Remained hostile towards each other throughout their lives ARMED CONFLICT

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8 Women and children massacred by LTTE in Kotiyagala in Monaragala District in Sri Lanka, Dec 1995 Src :

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11  Those killed are usually breadwinners of families  Riots of 1983 caused massive unemployment  Factory worked  Self-employed  Plantation workers  Many of the jobless were Sinhalese  Vandalism, looting and burning places of work such as garment factories  In a conflict, all parties suffer UNEMPLOYMENT

12  Businesses from other countries are needed for economic growth  Internal unrest drives away investors  Sri Lanka – investments fell  US$66m in 1982  US$39m in 1983  US$22m in 1986 LOSS OF FOREIGN INVESTMENTS

13  Tourism – a major income earner for Sri Lanka  Serious affected by violent internal conflict  Tourist arrivals fell drastically after 1983 riots  Loss of jobs; fall in income  Affects economy adversely  Less funds for public projects like transport and housing FALL IN NUMBER OF TOURISTS

14  Internal conflicts may attract foreign intervention  How? Role of mediator vs direct involvement  In this case, INDIA  1983 : Mediator  1987 : Military force  Jun 1987 : Flotilla and airdrops  Jul 1987 : Sri Lanka, under pressure from India, signed a peace accord with India FOREIGN INTERVENTION

15  Oct 1987 : Indian troops took Jaffna by force  Oct 1987 – Dec 1988 : Clashes between Indian peacekeeping force and Tamil Tigers  Mar 1990 : Indian peacekeeping force withdrawn FOREIGN INTERVENTION

16  Tension between Sinhalese and Tamils remained throughout 1990s  Hostilities still exist between Sinhalese government and Tamil Tigers AFTERMATH

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