Product Description
Explores the relationship of Sinhalese nationalism to the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka.
... Read more

Product Description

The Routledge Handbook of South Asian Politics examines key issues in politics of the five independent states of the South Asian region: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. Written by experts in their respective areas, this Handbook introduces the reader to the politics of South Asia by presenting the prevailing agreements and disagreements in the literature.

In the first two sections, the Handbook provides a comprehensive introduction to the modern political history of the states of the region and an overview of the independence movements in the former colonial states. The other sections focus on the political changes that have occurred in the postcolonial states since independence, as well as the successive political changes in Nepal during the same period, and the structure and functioning of the main governmental and non-governmental institutions, including the structure of the state itself (unitary or federal), political parties, the judiciary, and the military. Further, the contributors explore several aspects of the political process and political and economic change, especially issues of pluralism and national integration, political economy, corruption and criminalization of politics, radical and violent political movements, and the international politics of the region as a whole.

This unique reference work provides a comprehensive survey of the state of the field and is an invaluable resource for students and academics interested in South Asian Studies, South Asian Politics, Comparative Politics and International Relations.

Product Description
This volume explores the regional security complex of the Indian subcontinent in relation to the Tamil crisis since 1977. It focuses on the deployment of the Indian Peacekeeping Force (IPKF) in Sri Lanka between 1987 and 1990, the origins and build-up of the conflict which led to the IPKF's intervention and its aftermath. The author pays equal attention to both Sri Lankan and Indian perspectives. He adopts a broad international relations/peacekeeping viewpoint, using international relations concepts to analyze the Indo-Sri Lankan relationship in a regional and global context. Appendices reproduce the texts of agreements, speeches, letters and other documents. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

convoluted ethnic tensions
Krishna explains differing views of nationalism and ethnic identity, as expressed in India and Sri Lanka. For India, some of this arises out of religious differences with Pakistan. And for both India and Sri Lanka, the issues came out of the British
decolonisation. Each had severe problems making a national identity. The bloody separation between India and Pakistan is briefly gone into.

But, albeit on a much smaller scale, Sri Lanka also showed tensions. Between the Sinhalese majority and the Tamil minority. President Jayawardene came to power and retained it, in part by cultivating a Sinhala identity. But others like Bandaranaike also exacerbated matters, by proclaiming Sinhala to be the only language of the government. The reaction was an increasing alienation by the Tamils. Later to flare into a simmering civil war by the 1980s.

An ironic aspect of Sri Lanka is that both Sinhalese and Tamils see themselves as embattled minorities. The Sinhalese peer over the straits at India and see Tamil Nadu, with over 50 million Tamils.

The India intervention in Sri Lanka is also studied. An engagement that cost India some soldiers killed, as well as the assasination of Rajiv Gandhi.

Doesn't Quite understand the Tamil Nationalism in Sri Lanka
Krishna grounds his book in research he did in the summers of 1992 and 1993 in which he interviewed an impressive list of Indian and Sri Lankan actors in, and observers of, the late 1980s Indian intervention in Sri Lanka. He uses this research only as a stepping stone to a wider discussion of the relationship between the third world nation-state and ethnicity, which has wide - and painful - implications for the ongoing conflict in Sri Lanka. He also concludes, as have numerous other observers that

"Buttressing the example of Dravidianism in India through its obverse is the tragedy of Sri Lankan Tamil nationalism. Sri Lankan Tamils could have been folded into the national family with relative ease in the early 1950s. Yet, the majoritarian impulse of Sinhalese nationalism (and the political opportunities emergent in its wake) precluded a compromise. Sri Lanka is proof yet again that majoritarian over centralization produces both irredentist violence and precisely what it fears most - namely, partition or secession. The desire for Eelam emerges as a direct consequence of the very imagination that animates most nationalists in South Asia. In that sense, the question of Eelam is not one confined to Sri Lanka but one faced by all the nation-states in the region." (p242)

Krishna's main policy conclusion is that South Asian nations must be reimagined as pluralist, egalitarian, democratic spaces, not spaces inhabited by one language, ethnic or racial group. Unfortunately, especially for the Sri Lankan situation, he makes absolutely no recommendations about how to get there from here.

The second major problem with the book is the shocking lack of sympathy for the Sri Lankan Tamil cause in the specific, particularly surprising from one with such a thorough understanding of the dynamics of its generation. One reason for this lack of sympathy is Krishna's allegiance to pluralism.

"...in contemporary South Asia, the fiction of homogeneity reigns hegemonic over both managers of the nation-state and the many insurgent movements fighting against them. The various Eelams of South Asia share the mono-logical imagination that forever seeks to align territory with identity in a singular and final fashion. They are essentially partition redux, and for that reason they constitute the farcical sequels to the initial tragedy. Hence, most insurgent movements in the region do not constitute an alternative to the existing spatial imaginaires of the nation, nor are they worthy of support by those committed to a pluralist and democratic ethos." (p242)

I wish he had listed one insurgent movement which does provide an alternative anywhere in the world. Where is this alternative being incubated? I also wish he had given more than vague pledges of allegiance to pluralism and democracy, but concrete examples of how this new world could be created, especially in a situation of pressure from the state. If one does not have territory, how can one experiment in government? If insurgencies are simply reactions to majoritarian impulses, how are they supposed to be more than mirrors of what they oppose? If the state uses any possible class, caste, geographical or religious difference to weaken its opposition how can pluralism develop?

Also surprising is that Krishna, like most observers, interviewed for his research project those who fight the LTTE, rather than those who sympathize with them. Considering the time and place of the interviews, right after Rajiv Gandhi's assassination, the few Indian sympathizers of the LTTE were probably constrained to keep their mouths shut. Not one Sri Lankan LTTE sympathizer that I can identify was interviewed. It is astonishing to me that someone as sensitive as Krishna to the manner in which discourse follows the faultlines of power would have made such a basic mistake in trying to understand the IPKF incident. It does revel, however, to what extent Krishna's focus is India rather than Sri Lanka.

The end result of having such unbalanced interviews is a failure of interpretation of the specifics of the IPKF incident on Krishna's part. Most egregious is his accusation that the LTTE leadership wanted Thileepan to die to de-legitimize the IPKF. Krishna has not gotten a handle on either the popularity of Thileepan's project in Jaffna, the urgency of the grievances Thileepan was highlighting or Thileepan's own agency in his self-sacrifice. He calls the whole thing a `macabre spectacle,' but forgets to mention that J.N. Dixit, the Indian High Commissioner in Colombo, did not believe Thileepan would actually go through with his own death. He also does not deal with the failure of the Indians to recognize or honor a non-violent, quintessentially Indian, form of protest.

Krishna's interpretation - as it is a common one - has important consequences for future attempts to solve the Sri Lankan war, because even he believes the Tamil leadership will settle for nothing less than separation under any circumstances. This interpretation will lead to less of an emphasis on coming up with acceptable provisions of an accord and more on the need to destroy an uncompromising set of demons.

We must accept that it is very difficult for outsiders to develop a balanced view of the conflict because of a severe lack of credible, accessible sources. Those most intimately involved in the struggle are too busy to write their memoirs or interpretations of events, and security concerns constrain their accessibility. No powerful outside force is available to mentor sympathetic explanations of the Tamil side in the war. The past 5 years have seen a growth in the number of websites and newspapers addressing the issues, but, commonly, these resources seem to primarily communicate with the Tamil community rather than the outside world. (Mind you, communication within the community is exceptional.) At the same time the forces working to stigmatize the Tamil resistance as `terrorists' have made it unlikely that outsiders - even academics - will go to the effort of reading and absorbing the vast number of words available through the Internet. In any case such information is no substitute for the personal relationships which breed sympathetic understanding.

All these hurdles, however, do not do away with the need to be in a dialogue to the best of our ability with all those players in the outside world who affect events in Sri Lanka to make sure true versions of events and beliefs are heard. One never knows when we'll get lucky ... Read more

Product Description

Parliaments or legislatures are the keystone of democratic governance and they are critical in securing government accountability. This book presents a comparative analysis of the role of parliamentary committees in securing government accountability in the three largest and most important functioning democracies in South Asia: Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka.

The author compares the nascent democracy of Bangladesh with the stable and vibrant democratic system of India since its independence from the British in 1947 and Sri Lanka's longstanding and established democracy. He argues that in each country, parliament has been able to survive and perform the key parliamentary tasks of representation, legislation, oversight of the executive, conflict resolution and regime maintenance; concluding that parliamentary committees in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka do not perform as successfully as their counterparts in the Western world in controlling the government and holding it to account; however, their role in securing government accountability is not irrelevant.

Parliamentary Control and Government Accountability in South Asia will be a useful reference for studying third world parliaments in particular.

Product Description
Ultimate handbook on Customs, Trade Regulations and procedures ... Read more

Product Description
Sri Lanka, a small but beautiful island country in Southeast Asia, has long endured a bitter civil war between its Sinhalese majority and the minority Tamils.Today, it is also famous as a victim of a massive 2004 tsunami.This selection explores this unique nation's history, people, and culture. (20000101) ... Read more

Product Description
Through an examination of the critical junctures in postcolonial Sri Lankan politics, this book refines and advances our understanding of the dynamics underpinning violent and nonviolent "ethnic" conflict. It enables us to understand how the ebb and flow of relations within ethnic groups affects relations between groups, for good or for ill.
... Read more

Product Description
Personal account of initial efforts of the Indian Peacekeeping Force, guerrilla resistance. informed study on Indian military and Sri Lankan politics. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Insight worth knowing about India in Sri Lanka with the IPKF
Learning's at the 20-Year Milestone of the India Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in Sri Lanka:A Review

On July 29-30, 1987, the IPKF was inducted into Sri Lanka under the Accord signed between the Prime Minister of India, Mr. Rajiv Gandhi and the President of Sri Lanka, H.E. Mr. J.R. Jayewarddane, primarily with the mandate to restore calm given the ethnic conflicts in the island - between minority Tamils, who were politically marginalized, and the majority Sinhalese community.
The Accord envisaged India giving military assistance to conflict-ridden Sri Lanka and to bring peace in the country.

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), under its Supremo Vellupillai Pirabakarn, took up arms to achieve their politico-economic objectives. Today, twenty years later, LTTE is militarily active and Sri Lanka is still searching for peace and harmony in the country.In the `failure' of IPKF, India lost its credibility as a `peacekeeper' in the neighboring countries.

A new book on IPKF Operations in Sri Lanka:
Intervention in Sri Lanka: The IPKF Experience Retold, written by Major General Harkirat Singh throws fresh insight on IPKF operations and identifies the gaps and pitfalls which lead to its failure.General Harkirat was the first General Officer Commanding (GOC) for the IPKF and gives a first hand account of the initial phase of the operation.
The language used and the narrative style used by the author creates a vivid description of the day-to-day operation in the field and the plight of the common people in rural areas.
Nineteen rare pictures included in the book help us see the divergence of views between the military and the political organizations in India.A number of personal letters add fact to this picture.

The author argues that the IPKF did not succeed in achieving its mandate because it `did not have a clear-cut aim'. The IPKF went into operation within hours of the Accord being signed without adequate planning and preparation.The politicians and bureaucrats, including RAW, failed to address the real issues on the ground.Education and communication with the rural people were further road-blocks of success with the peacekeeping intervention.

One can draw many lessons from the IPKF experience to deal with our own national ethnic conflicts and insurgency. Economic empowerment of people, employment and self-employment generation, training for new skills and establishing credibility for civil authorities are the basics to win the trust of the people.
Military options serve only to provide short-term support in dealing with extremists.Media and publicity play a critical role in conveying the message to the population and convincing them about the ethics and goodwill of the military personnel.

One omission in the book is a comprehensive list of books and documents related to the ethnic conflict and peace effort in Sri Lanka as these - and especially this book are strongly recommended as reading for all interested in a sustainable peace - and in resolving ethnic conflicts and insurgency at home or abroad.

Prof. (Dr.) C.K. Basu
Director Emeritus, Colombo Plan Staff College
Manila, Philippines
ckbasu@yahoo.com

... Read more

Product Description

Product Description
This book endeavors to fill an important academic gap through its collection of ten in-depth essays that present a wide perspective of the subject. The book holistically portrays Tamil nationalism from various disciplinary perspectives like history, political science, international relations, art, literature, sociology, and anthropology. In doing so, it tries to understand the nature of nationalism as it emerges in these areas and adds to the richness and complexity of the problematic. The significance of this collection is not only its breadth of vision, but also the origins of the hypotheses. ... Read more

Product Description
The difference between maternal mortality in the industrialized and developing world is greater than any other development indicator. The apparent lack of progress in this area has generated a sense of hopelessness. Malaysia and Sri Lanka are two of the very few developing countries that have succeeded in reducing maternal mortality to levels comparable to many industrialized countries. This study provides the first comprehensive, in-depth analysis of the factors that contributed to maternal mortality decline in Malaysia and Sri Lanka over the last 50-60 years. It considers policy issues, health system developments, health system expenditures in maternal health, and the use in both countries, of professionally trained midwives. ... Read more

Product Description
This collection examines how religion and politics have intersected in Sri Lanka over the years, discussing several periods of Ceylonese history. It provides coverage of the Anuradhapura period and explores Theravada Buddhism in the political life of modern Sri Lanka. ... Read more

Product Description
Militarizing Sri Lanka is a study of the militarization that has buttressed the war between the Sri Lankan state and the LTTE for over two decades. It highlights militarization as a process through which the ideology of militarism is shaped and shared in a manner that makes militant solutions to conflict a part of institutional structures and ways of thought. It foregrounds militarization as activity and agency, capable of adaptation and transforming society in significant ways; and as a deeply gendered, contingent and shifting process. It also analyzes both the construction and resistance to militarization and militarism, but in a manner that draws attention to their relationality rather than as self-evidently oppositional categories. ... Read more