Some of the stronger protests and forceful political debates in Sri Lanka are taking place in relation to student rights, university teachers pay, allocation of government expenditure on education and inequalities relating to the Government’s private university bill. University students have been on the boil over issues from militarisation of the universities, including compulsory military training for entering university students last year, to attempts to ban student unions. University teachers carried out strike action for months last year extracting promises of higher pay and input into educational policy which were not carried forward with the Budget, leading to a token strike on January 17th. I wrote an article on the neoliberalisation of university education in the Sunday Island on Jan 15th discussing the larger project at work with the backing of the World Bank and IMF. Kumar David has written an article in the Jan 22nd issue of the Sunday Island explaining the z-scores scandal – about the Advanced Level exam results which are used for university entrance – and its relationship to the protests against the private university bill. The Young Asia Television in their episode of Connections today has documented the recent protests including some interviews with student leaders and university teachers. The uteachers blog is an excellent resource to find more articles and presentations by academics involved in the recent protests and actions. Historically, the universities have been a hot bed of protest as well as social and political change in Sri Lanka, and those in solidarity with progressive forces struggling for social justice in Sri Lanka may want to follow the protest movement gaining ground in the universities.
All posts by Ahilan Kadirgamar
Engaging Lankans in Black Politics on MLK Day
In approaching Martin Luther King Jr., Day, I inevitably think about the politics of figures and the generation of King and Malcolm X. That generation and the Black politics they engendered had a lasting impact on the US and the World more broadly. Coming with decolonisation in Africa and elsewhere, King, Malcolm X, the radical youth they inspired and their contemporaries such as Frantz Fanon and C.L.R. James transformed our conceptions of race and class, advancing anti-imperialist and anti-colonial visions to engage formidable questions of Black politics in the West. In a piece written with Jinee Lokaneeta as part of the monthly column ‘Beyond Boundaries’ of the South Asia Solidarity Initiative (SASI), in the South Asian Magazine for Action and Reflection (SAMAR), we began with Manning Marable and C.L.R. James, and the importance of a turn towards critical solidarity engaging questions of race and class.
Here, I want to think about the contributions of South Asian intellectuals, or more specifically Lankan intellectuals in the context of Black and Third World politics. In fact, there are two major Lankan intellectuals belonging to that generation of King and Malcolm X, who are increasingly not known to the younger generations of Lankans. A. Sivanandan, the editor of Race and Class and Director of the Institute of Race Relations in London and the late Archie W. Singham, long-time intellectual and professor based in New York are two such figures who have made a major mark in Black politics. Indeed, they can give us a sense of the possibilities of political struggle and the historical and philosophical potential of Black politics. It is my contention that engaging the politics of Sivanandan and Singham is all the more important at the current moment, as South Asians in the Diaspora are increasingly becoming agents of Western power despite the shifting terrain of politics in the West with the global economic crisis. Continue reading Engaging Lankans in Black Politics on MLK Day
An Appeal to the Tamil Community and its Civil and Political Representatives
An Appeal Signed by Tamils on the Eviction of Northern Muslims 21 Years Ago
Since the end of the war in May 2009, it has become important for all ethnic communities of Sri Lanka to re-examine and reevaluate their past. It is through this process of self-reflection that some of the major issues that confront state and civil society today can be meaningfully reconceived and reconfigured for the future.
While the war has drawn to a decisive close, the ethnic conflict is far from over and demands solutions short- and long-term. The quest for a viable political solution from a majoritarian state is a primary concern for the Tamil community today. Continued insecurity in the face of militarisation is an urgent matter. Armed militancy and a political culture of violence have further eroded into the democratic fabric of society. Resettlement and rehabilitation remain unresolved problems. Distribution of land, access to state and social networks, language parity, devolution of power, inter-ethnic reconciliation and the continued presence of gender, class and caste stratifications are a part of the political landscape today.
It is in this regard we raise the question of the eviction of the Northern Muslims 21 years ago. In October 1990, the LTTE evicted roughly 80,000 Muslims from the north in the wake of increasing hostilities and armed conflict in the north and east. The LTTE, which was militarily dominant in the north at that time and controlled large swathes of territory, ordered an entire community to leave the province in two days. In the Jaffna peninsula they were given just two hours’ notice. Subsequent to the eviction, several attempts were made by institutional mechanisms to facilitate the return of the communities to their original lands. During the Ceasefire Agreement (CFA), there were renewed attempts, particularly through the Secretariat for Immediate Humanitarian and Rehabilitation Needs (SIHRN), to negotiate the return of the Muslims with the Sri Lankan state and the LTTE.
In the current political landscape, the eviction of Muslims from the north and their return and resettlement pose a distinct political challenge to civil and political societies of the Tamil community. Continue reading An Appeal to the Tamil Community and its Civil and Political Representatives
Wither Wall Street: Challenge of the Occupy Movement
Over the last three months New York City has been electrified by the Occupy Wall Street movement. Prachi Patankar and I have been participating in some of the actions. We have also been part of a number of discussions within the South Asia Solidarity Initiative (SASI) on how an organisation like ours can bring an internationalist perspective to this movement. Prachi is also on the board of the War Resisters League (WRL). Through such discussions SASI and WRL organised Empire on Wall Street actions. With many of our comrades in India and Sri Lanka asking us about the impact of the Occupy Wall Street movement and its future, we decided to write this article. Continue reading Wither Wall Street: Challenge of the Occupy Movement
Transnational Torture by Jinee Lokaneeta reviewed with Prachi Patankar
There are few books as exhilarating as one by a comrade that is intellectually engaging and speaks to the current context. I was invited by 3rd i NY to a Conversation titled ‘Torturing Democracies: Past and Present’, where Jinee and I discussed her new book at Alwan for the Arts. The conversation came to life with the audience which included many of our comrades from the South Asia Solidarity Initiative (SASI) including Prachi. After that wonderful conversation, Prachi and I decided to delve further into the book and write a review. This was an exercise very different from what we normally engage with in SASI around our solidarity campaigns, but it was also a wonderful way to see another side of Jinee. That is the theoretically rich research of someone whom we relied on as a solid activist. I feel we should be doing more of reading, writing about and debating the work of our activist friends. A shorter version of this review has been published by Himal. Perhaps some of the themes in the book can be debated here with this longer review. Continue reading Transnational Torture by Jinee Lokaneeta reviewed with Prachi Patankar
Statement by SASI on People-to-People Solidarity with Palestine and Duplicity of South Asian States
A statement by the SOUTH ASIA SOLIDARITY INITIATIVE
SASI Calls for People-to-People Solidarity with Palestine and Condemns Duplicity of South Asian States in Palestine Bid for UN Recognition
The South Asia Solidarity Initiative (SASI) recognizes the importance and urgency of the Palestinian bid for recognition by the United Nations this September. Despite the threatened U.S. veto in the Security Council, all member nations have an opportunity to weigh in on the outcome through the General Assembly. We welcome the overwhelming support shown for Palestinian membership in the UNESCO. While noting the support for recognition of Palestine by South Asian states, SASI is dismayed by the duplicity of some of these states in continuing to build economic, military, and intelligence ties with Israel. SASI supports the efforts of all peoples movements in South Asia and elsewhere towards solidarity with the people of Palestine.
Continue reading Statement by SASI on People-to-People Solidarity with Palestine and Duplicity of South Asian States
Two Years On: No War but No Peace for Women still facing the Consequences of the War – CMTPC
Statement by COALITION OF MUSLIMS AND TAMILS FOR PEACE AND COEXISTENCE
The coalition of Muslims and Tamils is a Sri Lanka based organization-comprising Muslim and Tamil identified persons who as a general principle are committed to pluralism and social justice in all its forms. Specifically, we are committed to the peaceful coexistence of Muslims and Tamils in the country, particularly in the north and east, and to a just and equitable solution to the ethnic conflict.
We can be contacted at: ctmpc_srilanka@yahoo.com
We have changed our blog site and the new address will be up soon!
Old blogsite: http://www.ctmpc.blogspot.com/
Two Years On: No War but no peace for women still facing the consequences of the war
Women in the north and the east of Sri Lanka have undergone severe hardships during the war, including the loss of loved ones, family’s support structures, livelihoods, houses and also a loss of life and dignity. While there have been numerous changes announced by the Government the situation for women on ground, however, has continued to be challenging. It is sad since the end of the brutal war women’s lives have not seen a dramatic transformation over the last two years and they have continued to face the basic challenges of safety, shelter and basic facilities. It in this light that we wish to put forward a few issues that these women have been facing within the broader context of life in the north and east for the communities living there. We have chosen to highlight these issues because of their gravity, the State’s involvement in the same and the inability of women to seek justice in such cases owing to the lack of an effective civilian administration, security threats and the lack of a concrete remedy within the local legal system. While we write of the issues relating to women, they raise broader concerns impacting the families and communities. The incidents and the report cover only the Northern and Eastern Province of Sri Lanka. Continue reading Two Years On: No War but No Peace for Women still facing the Consequences of the War – CMTPC
Two years after the war: justice, reconciliation and the UN Panel Report
I am posting the Editorial of the latest issue of dissenting dialogues, a social justice magazine on Sri Lanka. The lengthy Editorial discusses the situation two years after the war and the much debated UN Panel Report on accountability for crimes committed towards the end of the war in Sri Lanka.
The May 2011 Issue also has an interesting article by Kanishka Goonewardena on the political economy of World Cup cricket titled, Space, time and cricket: from M.C.C to M-C-M’. The article engages the work of C.L.R. James, David Harvey and Giovanni Arrighi while discussing the shift of cricket (and) capital to India.
Continue reading Two years after the war: justice, reconciliation and the UN Panel Report
“dissenting dialogues” on Egypt, Sri Lanka and other debates
The editorial and the list of articles in the dissenting dialogues Issue No 2, February 2011 are posted below. The entire issue can be downloaded as a pdf file from the Sri Lanka Democracy Forum website.
Editorial
As the second issue of dissenting dialogues goes to press, we join in worldwide celebrations of the ongoing democratic revolution in Egypt, itself sparked off by an uprising in Tunisia. The Egyptian uprising, which has tremendous regional and possibly global consequences, came against a background of simmering unrest directed at a dictator who presided over a brutal, authoritarian regime. This regime was distinguished by its incarceration and torture not only of its own dissidents but of prisoners “renditioned” to it by the CIA, the denial of basic democratic rights on the pretext of fighting Islamism, and rising youth unemployment and inflation.
Although the timing and form of Egypt’s popular revolt could not have been predicted, an examination of the recent history of Egypt contextualises the forces at work. For a start, we cannot avoid looking at the recent history of neoliberalism in Egypt, its relationship to the authoritarianism of President Hosni Mubarak’s government, and the regime’s relationship to imperialism. The post-war history of Egypt also charts and indeed defines the historical trajectory of Third World sovereignty. Egypt’s revolt has to be understood in the context of the progressive socialist, anti-colonial struggle for national self-determination of the Bandung era from the 1950s until the liberalisation of the economy in the 1970s, the International Monetary Fund’s “restructuring” in the early 1990s, and the recent capitulation to the accumulation strategy of global finance capital.
Continue reading “dissenting dialogues” on Egypt, Sri Lanka and other debates
dissenting dialogues – New Social Justice Magazine on Sri Lanka
dissenting dialogues, a new social justice magazine on Sri Lanka was just launched. The introduction and the list of articles in the first issue are listed below. The entire magazine can also be downloaded
Introducing dissenting dialogues
Debates on the causes and consequences of the 30-year war in Sri Lanka, and its end in May 2009, continue to evoke heated exchanges in some quarters and a disempowered silence in others. A year and a half later, it is time to engage in an open discussion that is truly reflective. While there are both continuities and discontinuities from before, during and after the war, there is clearly a renewed need for dissent and dialogue to broaden and transform the debate. Continue reading dissenting dialogues – New Social Justice Magazine on Sri Lanka
Provincial Councils and the 13th Amendment: Interview with Lal Wijenayake
I interviewed attorney at law, veteran Left politician and former Provincial Councillor for fifteen years, Lal Wijenayake in July 2010. His experience is all the more important given the recent discussions and debates on the 13th Amendment and the Provincial Council system in Sri Lanka. While this interview from two months back is very much focused on his experience as a Provincial Councillor, in recent weeks, Lal Wijenayake was also a petitioner against the anti-democratic 18th Amendment to the Constitution before the Supreme Court. This was in contrast to the shameful manner in which all five Members of Parliament of the Socialist Alliance voted for the 18th Amendment. Continue reading Provincial Councils and the 13th Amendment: Interview with Lal Wijenayake
Notes on the Jaffna Economy
One of my friends in a discussion group in Colombo on ‘Democratising State and Society’ put forward the following challenge couple weeks ago. He said, a year after the end of the war, many of us who had been following the situation of the displaced people in the North, including the lack of freedom of movement and the militarization of the North have done little to engage the oppressive economic conditions of those affected by the war and now being resettled. That challenge was in the back of my mind as I visited Jaffna for ten days over the last two weeks. I tried to grasp what one could on a short visit. The following are very preliminary notes on the Jaffna economy, with a particular emphasis on agriculture and fisheries which ¬- despite technocratic and diasporic dreams of an information economy – continue to determine the economic life of the larger Jaffna population. These tentative notes I hope will stimulate some interest towards much needed research on the economy of the Jaffna District and the war affected Northern and Eastern Provinces. Continue reading Notes on the Jaffna Economy
A search that depressed me
[Thinking about recent political developments in Lanka, here is a recent poem by Mahendran Thiruvarangan, who lectures at the University of Jaffna — AK]
A search that depressed me
Searching
in those semi-arid paddy fields,
the cleavages of the silent hills, no longer luscious,
the dried up river,
the never-ending rows on the ballot sheet.
No sickles, no hammers, the sky blackened without stars,
green, blue, yellow, white, brown — all could paint our walls
with faces of new-born patriots and traitors,
the missing red,
gone with the wasted blood,
the Left,
left forever?
Bridges bombed and broken,
the tree long lost its roots,
the violent tsunamis,
patriotisms and nationalisms,
homelands and motherlands,
the ship is out of sight,
the crew all dead and missing,
sleeping in new camps,
with strange bedfellows who praise gods and demons.
The unhappy farmer of Tissamaharama,
the manacled Tamil prisoner from the thickets of the Wanni,
the withered tea-plucking woman in Talawakkele,
the homeless fisherman on the Eastern coast,
the evicted Jaffna Muslim,
the unspoken Malays, Burghers and Telugus,
disconnected,
throttling each other in battles misfought.
Cracks everywhere,
the wall crumbles.
Undermining Political Reconciliation with Post-Election Repression
The following are my prepared remarks at the Global South Asia conference at New York University on 13 February 2010. My prepared remarks on the Sri Lanka panel in titled, ‘Return of the Displaced and Political Reconciliation’ are below. The remarks in the Sri Lanka panel which I chaired were to complement the presentations by Sharika Thiranagama, New School for Social Research titled, ‘Houses of the Future: Return and Reconciliation amongst Northern Muslims and Tamils’ and V. V. (Sugi) Ganeshananthan, University of Michigan, Lanka Solidarity, journalist and author of Love Marriage titled, ‘Dialogue in the Diaspora’. The February 2010 issue of Himal Southasian magazine is a special issue on Jaffna, Sri Lanka and has a number of articles that address the post-war moment. The Sri Lanka Democracy Forum (SLDF) statement on 18 January 2010 titled, ‘SLDF Calls for National Attention on Demilitarization and a Political Solution’ details many of these issues in depth.
I want to begin with the end of the war, which inevitably leads to a shift in politics. Post-war politics can not be same as war politics.
During the last couple years of the war, President Rajapaksa put together a war coalition comprised of a broad spectrum, from Sinhala nationalists to sections of the Old Left. Despite the end of the war, the President and his government attempted to keep the war mentality alive, as we have seen through the continued suffering of the displaced as they were herded into internment camps with no freedom of movement. It was indeed a lost opportunity for political reconciliation. Continue reading Undermining Political Reconciliation with Post-Election Repression
Presidential Elections, Minorities and Political Space
The following is the write up of my talk given at the Centre for Society and Religion on January 11th, 2010. I have articulated some of these concerns in greater depth in my recent article in the January 9th, 2010 issue of the Economic and Political Weekly titled, ‘State Power, State Patronage and Elections in Sri Lanka’.
Presidential Elections, Minorities and Political Space
First, I want to thank the organisers for inviting me to speak here at the Centre for Society and Religion (CSR), an institution that embodies a great tradition of conscious political engagement. It is an honour to be given this privilege and I hope this series of discussions at CSR on the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections is the beginning of many discussions and debates on important political issues facing the peoples of our country. Indeed, the space that has opened up in recent weeks in the context of the elections should be expanded by all social institutions and social forums concerned about peace, justice and democracy. I for one believe that the debates, the social pressures and the mobilisations in the lead up to and after elections are at times even more important than the act of electing a President or other political representatives. Continue reading Presidential Elections, Minorities and Political Space
Debating “Political Islam”
A number of activists from the South Asia Solidarity Initiative (SASI) in New York have initiated a reading group on South Asia. The notes below are the second in a series of commentaries following reading discussions that some members of the reading group are posting on Kafila. This is an attempt to broaden the discussions and in the process make it a productive dialogue to understand developments in the region and deepen our solidarity.
Debating “Political Islam”
– Svati Shah, Biju Mathew, Sumitra Rajkumar, Prachi Patankar and Ahilan Kadirgamar
The recent debate between Samir Amin and Tariq Amin-Khan on a left perspective on “political Islam” in the context of imperialism, published in Monthly Review (December 2007 and March 2009), provides an opportunity to reflect on a number of issues that have vexed the anti-war movement and the left with respect to the on-going wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The most vexing of these issues has been the question of whom the left should target as its allies in those countries, and what position the left should take toward so-called “political Islam,” represented by Islamist groups calling for an end to foreign occupation. The definition of “political Islam” is presented below in relation to each critique. Both Amin and Amin-Khan are in agreement that both “political Islam” and imperialism have to be challenged simultaneously. There are no strategic questions here, in terms of joining one to fight the other. The defeat or withdrawal of both is desirable in the interests of a people-centred politics. In imperialism’s projection of capitalism and reactionary Islam’s comfort with capitalism (that class and gender do not trouble it) they are objective allies even if on the ground their adherents are military enemies. This initial agreement then delves into a number of nuanced questions that must be considered in order to foster the return to a people centred politics in both of these countries, and the regions as a whole.
MRF United Workers’ Union Case: Ramapriya Gopalakrishnan
This guest post has been sent to us by RAMAPRIYA GOPALAKRISHNAN. She is a lawyer practising in the Madras High Court working on labour rights, environmental and human rights issues. She is one of the two lawyers who appeared for the MRF United Workers’ Union before the Madras High Court.
The MRF United Workers’ Union case – Ruling of the Madras High Court on the recognition of trade unions
The workers in the Arakonam factory of MRF Limited, a tyre major, ended their 125 day old strike on September 14, 2009 and resumed work following the pronouncement of the much awaited verdict in the case filed by the MRF United Workers’ Union before the Madras High Court concerning the recognition of the union by the management of the company.
The Arakonam factory of MRF Limited in Vellore District in Tamil Nadu is the largest of the six tyre manufacturing factories of the company. The workers in the factory are paid piece rate wages with no transparency in the process. They do not have any information on what constitutes a ‘piece’ and the rate at which they will be paid for the ‘piece.’ Moreover, the number of ‘contract workers’ engaged in the factory for direct production work is more than twice the number of direct confirmed workers engaged for doing the same work. These facts by itself would indicate the status of labour law compliance in the factory. There was thus a long felt need among the workers for an independent and effective trade union to protect their interests.
Continue reading MRF United Workers’ Union Case: Ramapriya Gopalakrishnan
The End or Future of Capitalism and Ending Obama’s War
Last night I heard a public conversation between the Marxist Geographer David Harvey and Alexander Cockburn the editor of CounterPunch and columnist with The Nation. The conversation titled, ‘The End or Future of Capitalism’ was hosted by The Center for Place, Culture & Politics. Cockburn opened the conversation by speaking about the lack of vision in the Left. Harvey argued that the capitalist system was facing tremendous stress and that a different path of economic development had to be envisioned. Harvey continued on the end of capitalism as one needing analysis in terms of how this crisis arose with the problem of accumulation and realization of surplus, and poses the question of what is to be done? Central to Harvey’s argument is that the mounting stress seen at the centre of the capitalist system in the last three decades is the culmination of the inability to sustain the two and a half percent compounded accumulation that has been a characteristic of global capital over the last couple hundred years. That the capitalist system is unable to find productive investments for the two and a half percent accumulation rate leading to repetitious and aggravating crises in the unproductive bubbles in financial assets.
I stood in line when the floor was open, but much to my disappointment the moderator had brought the conversation to an end before I could ask my question, and so I am going to ask it here. Both Harvey and Cockburn talked about the urgency of the moment and the need for provocative questions from the Left. But what is the more urgent question to ask at this moment? Is it the end or future of capitalism? Or is it the end or future of the American Empire? The two may well be related and even two sides of the same coin, but the question for me is influenced by the urgency of the situation in our region; the war in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The relatedness of the two questions also leads me to ask what would be the consequence of the tremendous stress at the centre of the capitalist system on the wars fought at the periphery of Empire? And in turn, what is the impact of the tremendous stress of the wars on the periphery for the hegemonic centre of the capitalist system?
Continue reading The End or Future of Capitalism and Ending Obama’s War
Reading Land and Reform in Pakistan
A number of activists from the South Asia Solidarity Initiative (SASI) in New York have initiated a reading group on South Asia. The notes below are the first in a series of commentaries following reading discussions that some members of the reading group hope to post on Kafila. This is an attempt to broaden the discussions and in the process make it a productive dialogue to understand developments in the region and deepen our solidarity.
Reading Land and Reform in Pakistan
— Svati Shah, Prachi Patankar and Ahilan Kadirgamar
“…any strategy to stem the tide of Taliban-Al Qaida led militancy cannot ignore the issue of land rights…. Any reforms that revalue and formally recognize the local management of common property resources, therefore, will elevate the authority of tribal leaders over religious clerics or TAQ militants.”
Haris Gazdar, ‘The Fourth Round, And Why They Fight On: An Essay on the History of Land and Reform in Pakistan’
Given the escalation of a multifaceted war in Pakistan, and given our own commitment to a peace with justice in South Asia, we have started reading and discussing issues of importance in Pakistan and South Asia more broadly. This inquiry is informed by the alarming and rapidly changing situation in Pakistan, and by an interest in interrogating the category ‘South Asia’ itself. While all are agreed that the term ‘South Asia’ is indispensable, we wonder how ‘South Asia’ could be used to describe more than a region or a set of places outlined by shared borders. We wonder how we can move beyond the limitations of finding historical unity in South Asia primarily through the lens of British colonialism? We wonder how we could describe the political unities and potential solidarities of ‘South Asia’ in this moment? We find it particularly helpful to approach these questions by seeing common issues in the region relating to labour, land and the role of the state in societies in South Asia. At the same time, we want to move away from the received notions of South Asia, whether they be the statist conceptions of SAARC, South Asia as seen by the US State Department or, for that matter, as a region defined by area studies.
Remembering Rajani and Re-Reading The Broken Palmyrah
I am posting below a much longer version of an article that is published in Himal Southasian. The Broken Palmyrah is out of print, but the entire book is on the UTHR(J) website.
Remembering Rajani and Re-Reading The Broken Palmyrah
September this year many will remember Rajani Thiranagama, a feminist, an activist, a Marxist, a scholar, a doctor and a teacher assassinated twenty years ago on September 21st, 1989. Among the reasons for her assassinations was the publication of that profoundly grounded work, The Broken Palmyrah, which she co-authored with three other academics from the Jaffna University. While we commemorate the life and work of Rajani at a time when the war has come to an end, in many ways the Palmyrah is still broken. It is in this context that I return to that inspiring work, which has much to teach us, in particular for those of us belonging to the younger generations of activists after Rajani. Inspiring, for despite the worst cruelties of war, it carried a message of hope, an analysis of possible ways forward and faith in the resilience of ordinary people. Continue reading Remembering Rajani and Re-Reading The Broken Palmyrah
Sri Lanka: A Tragedy Foretold – Rohini Hensman
guest post by ROHINI HENSMAN
Once a forest fire is raging, putting it out is difficult, and an enormous amount of destruction is inevitable. The same is true of the war in Sri Lanka. Even over the past fifteen years, there were several chances to prevent this tragedy, but only a tiny minority of those who are now grieving over the dead and injured were arguing then that a failure to take these chances would lead to a bloodbath. Continue reading Sri Lanka: A Tragedy Foretold – Rohini Hensman
KAFILA - COLLECTIVE EXPLORATIONS SINCE 2006 