Before and After 1983: The Impact of Theorising Sri Lankan Tamil Migration History around the 1983 Colombo Riots

Ratnapalan, L. M.

doi:10.1080/00856401.2014.882874

Cited by 49 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…In fact, the 1983 riot drew international attention to the situation of Sri Lankan Tamils and as a result, Sri Lankan Tamil migration is largely understood as a post-1983 phenomenon. However, Ratnapalan (2014) opposes taking 1983 as the pivotal moment of Sri Lankan Tamil migration, suggesting, rather, that it is imperative to explore Sri Lankan Tamil migration through a historical perspective which would include, for example, Tamils who left Sri Lanka in the 1950s and 1960s.…”

Section: The Fourth Wavementioning

confidence: 99%

Sri Lankan Out-Migration: Five Key Waves Since Independence

Jayawardena

2020

Univ. Colombo Rev.

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Sri Lankan migration provides a mini-laboratory for migration scholars because of its rich diversity. The "Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora," the "Sri Lankan maid," the "Sri Lankan refugee," and the "Sri Lankan boat migration to Australia" are some examples of the diversity and complexity of the phenomenon. At present, Sri Lanka has a total of three million emigrants of which one million have permanently settled outside Sri Lanka. This permanently settled community constitutes a one to twenty diaspora to population ratio, a significantly unique ratio for any sending country. Nonetheless, a holistic understanding of Sri Lankan migration is lacking, even though selective aspects of the phenomenon have received some academic attention. This article intends to fill this gap by providing a broader overview of Sri Lankan migration since its Independence. Through a thorough review of related academic articles and fity-one semi-structured interviews with Sri Lankan emigrants, this article summarizes the key elements of Sri Lankan migration in five main waves from Independence until today. By revealing the diversity of the Sri Lankan immigrant community and its complexity, the article suggests the importance of understanding any immigrant community holistically not only for a better scholarly understanding but also effective policy making.

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Section: The Fourth Wavementioning

confidence: 99%

Sri Lankan Out-Migration: Five Key Waves Since Independence

Jayawardena

2020

Univ. Colombo Rev.

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“…Priya came from Jaffna to help Antoni's family after the devastating tsunami of 2004. Antoni's mother, Appama, is widowed from the riots in 1983 between Sinhalese and Tamil communities in the south of the island, known as Black July when thousands of Tamil people were killed during the commotion (see Ratnapalan ; Thiranagama ). After the civil war comes to a brutal end, Antoni ends up in Britain as an asylum seeker, with his wife, Rajini, and one child, Theepa, remaining as refugees in Chennai, India.…”

Section: Truth‐fiction In Actionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Drawing‐Writing Culture: The Truth‐Fiction Spectrum of an Ethno‐Graphic Novel on the Sri Lankan Civil War and Migration

Dix¹,

Kaur²

2019

Visual Anthropology Review

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With our focus on an “ethno‐graphic novel” on the Sri Lankan civil war and the forcible displacement and migration of Tamil survivors, we make two main propositions while reflecting on the “graphic narrative turn” that has emerged in anthropology in recent years. First, we inscribe drawing into the “writing of cultures” where words have held a superior status in ethnographic representations. Rather than seeing drawings as perceptive tools for recording scenes in fieldwork alone, we extend them to a representational practice where they can have a deep, intricate, and equivalent entanglement with words to create synchronous affective intensities among a larger audience. Our second proposal follows Jean Rouch on cinéma vérité to interrogate assumptions about truth and fiction as portrayed by film representations. We propose a theory and practice for graphic novel production that we have termed vérités graphiques (literally, graphic realities). This describes the collaborative and interactive engagement with people's contributions and views, and their distillation and fictionalization through the ethno‐graphic form. We diverge from cinéma vérité, however, by highlighting a truth‐fiction spectrum that further challenges the presumed objectivity of what is seen, experienced, co‐created, and revealed.

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“…This, in turn, raises the vexed question of ‘identity’ and the degree to which transfers (including acts of charity) can be seen as an expression of identity. A common element in much of the literature on the Sri Lankan diaspora, especially the Tamil diaspora, is the changing nature of Tamil identity and its relationship to wider issues such as globalisation, transnational identities, an ‘identity crisis’ following the defeat of the LTTE and ways in which individuals have to deal with ‘multiple identities’ (Brun and van Hear 2012; George 2011; Hess and Korf 2014; O’Neill 2014; Orjuela 2008; Ratnapalan 2014). In terms of this approach, charitable acts and the changing landscape of charitable donations—indeed, any sort of transaction—become both a manifestation and constitutive of such identities.…”

Section: The Meanings Of Givingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Philanthropy, Remittances and Identity: The Case of London-based Sri Lankans

Kabir

Stirrat

2017

Society and Culture in South Asia

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Although expatriate remittances are a major topic of study in the world of development, relatively little research has taken place on the motives and meanings of international remittances. This article examines Sri Lankan expatriates in the United Kingdom. It focuses on charitable and philanthropic activities and argues that these can only be understood within the context of the personal histories of the donors.

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Before and After 1983: The Impact of Theorising Sri Lankan Tamil Migration History around the 1983 Colombo Riots

Cited by 49 publications

References 0 publications

Sri Lankan Out-Migration: Five Key Waves Since Independence

Sri Lankan Out-Migration: Five Key Waves Since Independence

Drawing‐Writing Culture: The Truth‐Fiction Spectrum of an Ethno‐Graphic Novel on the Sri Lankan Civil War and Migration

Philanthropy, Remittances and Identity: The Case of London-based Sri Lankans

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