The ethnic conflict between the Sinhalese and Tamils in Sri Lanka has a history spanning more than 100 years. It began when Sri Lanka was under the British colonial rule, as resentment was created when the Tamil minority was privileged over the Sinhalese for jobs and educational opportunities. The reversed happened when Sri Lanka became independent in 1948, as the Sri Lankan government passed the Ceylon Citizenship Act and the ‘Sinhala Only’ Official Language Act, making life increasingly difficult for the Tamils. Ethnic violence errupted during the 1950s and 1960s as a result of the perceived unfair treatment. Further unhappiness was caused with the introduction of new and more stringent university admission criteria for Tamils after 1970 to limit their enrolment in university, as well as the resettlement policy implemented during the 1950s, when Sinhalese peasants, Buddhist monks and even the Sri Lankan Army moved in and took over areas occupied by Tamils. The unjust treatment of Tamils was the impetus for the formation of the Tamil United Liberation Front, a new political party created to fight for Tamil rights. Out of this arose the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE aka Tamil Tigers), a youth militant group who adopted violence as a means to achieve their goal - to have a separate and independent Tamil state.
Sharon Teng, Conflict and Harmony in Multi-Ethnic Societies, National Library of Singapore (via browngirlsintherain)
