Opinion: Sri Lanka needs reconciliation

With war seemingly over, efforts to build lasting peace in Sri Lanka must now begin.

Vasu MohanMay 18, 2009 12:41Updated May 30, 2010 11:55

Sri Lankan civilians wading and using inflatable tubes to cross a lagoon to escape the island's war zone, where the military surrounded Tamil Tiger rebels for the final battle to end a 25-year conflict. (Sri Lankan Government/Reuters)

WASHINGTON — The Sri Lankan government and the separatist rebels of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam say, in the words of the Tigers, that the civil war that has claimed more than 60,000 people has “reached its bitter end.”

The war may end. Separatists may be defeated. Peace, much needed in one form or another, may return to Sri Lanka. But how will the nation move past the atmosphere of winners and losers, address legitimate grievances, and eliminate the deep-rooted mistrust and animosity that has been created between the Sinhala and Tamil communities?

Sri Lanka is a multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-lingual society. Each community in Sri Lanka rightfully regards its history with pride. Any long-lasting solution to fulfilling the aspirations of all these communities and resolving the current ethnic crisis cannot be accomplished merely through people tolerating each other, considering each other separate but equal, or through the submergence of minority cultures into the majority culture. A governance structure must be put in place to ensure the rights of the minorities.

There is very little discussion on this subject in Sri Lanka at the moment. Civil society has rightfully been calling attention to the suffering of civilians and the war’s collateral damage, but it has not been able to initiate long-term programs. The government has been too busy fighting the war and concerned with ending the separatist movement before dealing with the legitimate grievances of its minorities.

The Tamil Tigers have been on a fight or die course. Meanwhile, the people of Sri Lanka have been forced to take sides — are you with the government or against the government? Are you pro-Tigers or anti-Tigers? They are being forced to take sides every day with their friends, their co-workers, their families. The tattered fabric of this tiny nation is being torn asunder.

There are very few models of reconciliation in the world today that are rooted in the principles of universal human rights. Ireland and South Africa are often hailed as models of societies emerging from an era of oppression moving towards equity and justice. A similar model needs to be created in Sri Lanka to be able to get past the deep-seated prejudice that exists at many levels.