Category: Human Rights and Related

From ‘Transition’ to ‘Transformation’ – A New Approach to Post-Conflict Justice

Natasha (De Silva) Palansuriya1 Comment

In recent years there has been an increase in the number of countries considered ‘in transition’, however of nearly hundred of those countries only a handful can be considered to be moving towards successful, well-functioning democracies.  It is not a surprise considering that transitional justice is founded on westen-liberal peace theories, and promotes a one-size fits all solution to redress violations committed during conflicts or authoritarian regimes – and does not look much further than that.

Over the years Sri Lanka too has been grappling with ‘transitional justice’; trying to set up mechanisms in order to adhere to the standards of the international community, however, nothing constructive has come out of it. I have been studying this concept in the context of Sri Lanka, possibly for the past 6 years, and what has dawned on me time and time again is that the focus needs to change from a process that is run by the politicians and elites of the country (and outside the country) to one that is completely embedded in the grassroots.

A fundamental weakness of transitional justice is that it takes place at the top (i.e the process is run by governments, international and national bodies)¹.  This prevents the results expected to reach deep into the soil of the society². This explains, at least partly, why there seems to be little or no effect from the transitional justice process thus far. Therefore, it seems timely that an emerging concept – Transformative Justice – be introduced to the Sri Lankan post-conflict context. Continue reading “From ‘Transition’ to ‘Transformation’ – A New Approach to Post-Conflict Justice” →

Arousing Compassion

Natasha (De Silva) Palansuriya3 Comments

The events that took place in Sri Lanka in the past few days truly left me confounded – mostly sad, angry and helpless. Watching from a distance it felt surreal, all I could think of was why this keeps happening to us again and again. There was chaos on the streets of Kandy, a state of emergency, innocent people been attacked because of their race/religion.  I was then inclined to write a blog post out of that disappointment, about the reasons we keep going back to communal conflicts,  but of course the reasons are many. One explanation that is simple, yet complex at the same time, and which I keep coming back to in my readings again and again is the need for justice for what happened in the past. Conflicts have the potential to play itself out in different ways in the future. The violence and conflict that appear to be new is often historically informed and rooted in ongoing experiences of social marginalisation, political exclusion and economic exploitation.

Whilst this needs to be discussed, today I would like to specifically focus on the unity and solidarity of our people in the aftermath of this violence. Because right now I’m not writing from a place of disappointment, I’m writing from a place of deep appreciation for my country men and women. Continue reading “Arousing Compassion” →

Voices of Jaffna

Natasha (De Silva) Palansuriya3 Comments

So I finally made my way to Jaffna. It has been something I wanted to do ever since the end of the war in 2009. The best part of my trip was talking to the locals about how their lives have changed since the end of the war – their stories moved me, so I wanted to share it with you.

 

IMG_6624“We have been travelling since Sunday to all the temples in the North because of Shivaratri (Hindu religious festival), and we return home to Batticaloa tomorrow morning. Things have changed quite a bit since the end of the war. We don’t have to fear war anymore, but we lost our houses so we now live in rented houses. Before the war we could sit at our own home and eat peacefully, we had our own money, but life is hard now. I live with my daughter and son-in-law. He is a farmer so they take care of me. And in return I do all the household work. I pray to God to get younger”
Paramsothi at Nallur Temple 

Continue reading “Voices of Jaffna” →

A Step in the Right Direction… Do You Agree?

Natasha (De Silva) Palansuriya1 Comment

A few days ago I was greeted with the good news that the new government of Sri Lanka lifted the ban on the national anthem being sung in Tamil. My joy was disturbed by certain statuses I saw on Facebook that undermined this positive move. So here I am, inspired to write a blog, because I was shocked and mostly heartbroken that almost 5 years after the war, there are still people with racist views. So why should the national anthem also be in Tamil?

Firstly, it’s about time, because the Sri Lankan government embarked on their journey towards reconciliation with the LLRC report been published, and this move is taking us ever closer to achieving this goal. It is a move that shows the Tamil people that Sri Lanka belongs to them as much as it does to the Sinhalese. It is also a symbol of moving forward in unity, as one people, despite race or religion – we are all Sri Lankan.

Continue reading “A Step in the Right Direction… Do You Agree?” →

Winning the Peace Through Reconciliation: A Case Study of Sri Lanka

Natasha (De Silva) Palansuriya2 Comments

Sri Lanka concluded a brutal civil war between the state and the separatist group in May 2009. Since then the president of Sri Lanka appointed the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) to investigate human rights violations and present recommendations to achieve reconciliation in Sri Lanka.

This dissertation seeks to understand the concept of reconciliation and how it has been applied in Sri Lanka and the impact it has had on the society in Sri Lanka. The research involves interviews with NGOs in Sri Lanka and outside Sri Lanka who works towards reconciliation and sustainable peace in Sri Lanka.

Through this research what we have come to understand is that whilst many great recommendations have been made by the LLRC, the implementation of these recommendations has been a failure. What we have further come to understand is that whilst the government is developing infrastructure and the economy, nothing much has been done to heal the emotional wounds of the war affected people. Therefore, NGOs have been instrumental in giving their knowledge and experience in finding an effective way to go about achieving reconciliation in Sri Lanka. Whilst many further recommendations were made by the NGO representatives interviewed, what stood out most was that the Sri Lankan government should be open to involving third parties , such as local NGOs and international bodies, in the reconciliation process in order to make it more efficient, effective and successful, to see a Sri Lanka that has been healed of its wounds and taking a path towards sustainable peace.

To download the full dissertation Click Here

Zero Dark Thirty – Is It Conveying the Right Message?

Natasha (De Silva) Palansuriya3 Comments

MV5BMTQ4OTUyNzcwN15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTQ1NDE3OA@@._V1_SX214_Yesterday whilst visiting family I watched the film ‘Zero Dark Thirty’, which narrates the capture and killing of the most wanted terrorist at the time, Osama Bin Laden, by American troupes. Whilst overall it was a well produced film, the first 10-15 minutes of the film was painful to watch; it made me extremely uncomfortable and angry because it went against everything I have learnt about international human rights law. While I admire the creators of this film, and respect the real life heroes who were brave enough to venture this dangerous operation, and most of all the woman who was the mastermind of the operation, I would like to present my criticism about what I learned from the first few scenes of the film. Continue reading “Zero Dark Thirty – Is It Conveying the Right Message?” →

In the shoes of Nimalaruban’s Parents

Natasha (De Silva) PalansuriyaLeave a comment

Whilst going through ‘Groundviews’ I came across the link to this shocking and disturbing article (http://dbsjeyaraj.com/dbsj/archives/7855). It’s about the murder of 28-year-old Nimalaruban from Vavuniya, allegedly by state authorities.  I’m surprised that I didn’t come across it much sooner (see http://groundviews.org/2012/07/31/ganesan-nimalaruban-a-damning-murder-funeral-and-silence/ ).

I will not speculate the authenticity of this story, there is always two sides to a story, but considering that it is true, there are a few things that I would like to draw attention to that will help the reconciliation process of Sri Lanka.

First of all, I was saddened by just reading what the parents would have gone through, not only that they  were unable to understand completely what was going on due to the language barrier, but just being sent from place to place with no proper direction, and not being able to see their son for five days, whilst being told that he was in a seriously critical condition. I was sitting on my desk, safe and sound, but my body felt like it was somewhere else, frozen, my eye threatening to tear.

Continue reading “In the shoes of Nimalaruban’s Parents” →

There is no other way to solve human problems other than with loving-kindness and compassion

Natasha (De Silva) Palansuriya1 Comment

I wanted to share this video because I’m relieved that someone is speaking out. Let’s not let another 30 years of destruction and grief be repeated again. Let’s work together to stop this conflict before it escalates. Let’s not let the paradise that is Sri Lanka be turned into hell.

“We should be alarmed if our society is moving towards another conflict again… we can blame our foregone generation for the last war. But, if the same thing repeats, it is a sign of our failure. It is our responsibility to prevent such a thing from happening again” – Ven Dhammananda, Lecturer at the University of Kelaniya.

‘Red My Lips’ – Stop Blaming Victims of Abuse!

Natasha (De Silva) Palansuriya2 Comments
Me with my 'Red Lips'... inspired and empowered to talk!
Me with my ‘Red Lips’… inspired and empowered to talk!

I was invited by a friend on Facebook to join this amazing campaign called ‘Red My Lips’… It’s a campaign to create awareness and stop blaming victims of sexual abuse. And a really creative way of creating awareness is to wear red lipstick for the month of April. It’s not only empowering to wear such a bold colour all the time, but it’s the perfect opportunity to get the conversation started.

So, today a girl at work commented that she liked the colour of my lipstick… I told her that I’m wearing it for a cause and that got us talking… and I’m 99% percent sure that, it will get her talking and her friends talking and it’s going to create a wave of talking about this ridiculous trend of victim blaming. From the girl who was gang raped on a bus in India being blamed for it to the 14 year old girl in Maldives being blamed for ‘having underage sex with her stepfather’… when in fact she was raped… it’s everywhere.. and women are not the only victims of sexual abuse, men are too. So this campaign is for everyone.

Continue reading “‘Red My Lips’ – Stop Blaming Victims of Abuse!” →

The next time before you complain…

Natasha (De Silva) Palansuriya1 Comment
Hussein witnessed his entired family been killed except for his brother who takes care of him now in Norway. He too was stabbed and has lost the ability to walk and has a serious mental condition. Because his story was heard the Norwegian government has granted him temporary permission to remain. Still Image from the film courtesy of the web trailer from http://vimeo.com/52241270
Hussein witnessed his entire family been killed except for his brother who takes care of him now in Norway. He too was stabbed and has lost the ability to walk and has a serious mental condition. Because his story was heard the Norwegian government has granted him temporary permission to remain. Still Image from the film courtesy of the web trailer from http://vimeo.com/52241270

Today I had the privilege of watching the documentary ‘Nowhere Home’ by the inspiring Norwegian film-maker Margreth Olin at the Human Rights Watch Film Festival in London.

She tells the story of boys from Afghanistan, Kurdistan, Iraq and other war-striken countries who seek asylum in Norway, but who will be sent back to their countries as soon as they turn 18.

They try to escape a horrific life; experiencing people been killed, even their close family and friends, and to think that they have to go back to these conditions. Khalid, a boy portrayed in the film, say there is no hope in Afghanistan, there is no humanity.

For most of us, the day we turn 18 is special, we celebrate with big parties and embrace a life of freedom as an adult. But for these boys, the day they turn 18 is the end of their lives.They know no freedom, they have no hope for a future. It makes me wonder, and I hope it makes you wonder too… what is it that we have to complain about? We have hope for a future, we have the freedom and the choice to choose our paths… But these boys, they have a future of fear, trying to illegally cross borders to be safe and face the ruthless authorities who imprison them.

We have a lot to be thankful for. And if you don’t have the desire or the ability to take a risk like Margreth Olin to give a voice to these boys and so many others who suffer like them, the least you can do is to think about them the next time before you complain.

My best wishes are with Margreth who is working tirelessly to change the system in Norway to give children like Khalid and Hussein hope.