Download Sri Lanken Civil War Resumption 2005

An island nation located off the southern coast
of India in the Indian Ocean
 Before 1972 was known as Ceylon
 Currently know as the Democratic Socialist
Republic of Sri Lanka
 Main religions are Buddhism and Hinduism with
Islam and Christianity in the minority
 Two main ethnicities are Sinhalese and Tamil
 Main exports are tea, coffee, coconuts, rubber,
and cinnamon
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Individual Level
State Level
Systemic Level
Proximate
•Mahinda
Rajapakse
•Liberation Tigers
of Tamil Ealam
guerilla tactics
•Offense of Sri
Lankan Armed
Forces
•2004 Tsunami
Remote
•Rajiv Ghandi
•President Junius
Jayewardene
•Civil society
division and party
power struggles
•Sinhala Only Act
and Consitution
•Colonial heritage
•Western
movements
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In 1517 the Portuguese set up the first fort city
In 1638 the Dutch gained some control and by
1660 had full control
In 1802 the British absorbed Sri Lanka from
the Dutch
Gained Independence peacefully in 1948 from
British
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1802 Baptist Mission
1880’s Young Men and Women’s Christian
Associations and Salvation Army
Buddhist, Muslim, and Hindu backlash
organizations such as Muslim Education
Society, Maha Bodi Society, and the Young
Men’s Buddhist Association
1900’s Boy Scout and Girl Guide Association,
the Rotary of Colombo, and the Red Cross
Society
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Under British Rule the official language was English
Formally know as the Official Language Act
Passed in 1956 and made Sinhala the only official
language of Sri Lanka
Sinhala was spoken by 70% of the population
Under Britain the Sinhalese thought Tamils were
privileged and this is an assertion of the majority
rights
Also seen as a distancing of colonial past
In constitutions of 1972 and 1978 also granted “the
foremost place” to Buddhism
The 7th Prime Minister of India
Early 1985 Gandhi declared opposition to
Tamil Eelam
 Gandhi refused to withdraw the Indian Peace
Keeping Force until he resigned they remained in Sri
Lanka
 The operation killed over 1,100 Indian Soldiers and
5,000 Tamils
 In August 1985 Gandhi attempted to help Tamils
negotiate with the Sri Lankan government on Tamil
Eelam
 Gandhi was assassinated on May 21, 1991 by a Tamil
suicide bomber
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First President of Sri Lanka
Only after the 1977 Riots did he
lift the policy of standardization
for university admission for Tamils
He passed the Prevention of Terrorism Act in
1979 which gave police the power of arrest
Jayewardene and Rajiv Gandhi constructed
the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord to weaken and
demobilize the Tamil and give them a region
of control
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In December 2004 the tsunami initially
created peace and unity between ethnic
groups
Political, Military, and NGO’s took over relief
efforts and influx of foreign aid
2006 Sri Lankan Armed Forces launched an
offensive attack on the Tamil Tigers
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Founded in May 1976 its goal is to form a separate
Tamil state in the north and east of Sri Lanka
India originally helped the LTTE with material
support until Rahjiv Gandhi
Training occurs in the Middle East,
India (Tamil Nadu), and Sri Lanka
In 2001, the LTTE dropped its demand
for a separate state and instead it
stated that they would settle for a
form of regional autonomy
In March 2002, both sides signed
an official Ceasefire Agreement (CFA)
The 6th and current President
In 2006 the government demanded
to abrogate the ceasefire agreement,
stating that the only possible solution to the ethnic
conflict was military solution, and that the only way
to achieve this is by eliminating the Liberation
Tigers of Tamil
 On January 2, 2009 Rajapaksa, announced that the
Sri Lankan troops had captured Kilinochchi, the city
which the LTTE had used for over a decade as its
administrative capital
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The entire Jaffna peninsula was captured by
the Sri Lanka Army by January 14, 2009
President Mahinda Rajapaksa declared
military victory over the Tamil Tigers on May
16, 2009 after 26 years of war
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Bernstein, Nina. “As Civil War Ends in Sri Lanka, New Divisions Arise in
New York.” The New York Times 19 May 2009: A.20. ProQuest. Web. 3 Mar.
2010.
Bullion, Alan. Civil Wars. Vol. 7. N.p.: n.p., 2005. Ebsco Host. Web. 3 Mar.
2010.
Greenberg, Richard. “Sri Lanka Lurches Toward Civil War.” The Nation 30
Nov. 1985: 582-585. Ebsco Host. Web. 3 Mar. 2010.
Orjuela, Camilla. Civil Wars. Vol. 7. N.p.: n.p., 2005. Ebsco Host. Web. 3
Mar. 2010. pp.120-137.
Sengupta, Somini, and Shimali Senanayake. “Resumption of Civil War
Tests Civilians’ Endurance.” The New York Times 18 Sept. 2006: A.12.
ProQuest. Web. 3 Mar. 2010.
“Sri Lanka.” Wikipedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Mar. 2010.
<http://www.wikipedia.com>.
“The War Dividend.” The Economist 17 May 2008: 56. Academic Search
Premier. Web. 3 Mar. 2010.