SRI LANKA

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SRI LANKA
A DIVIDED ISLAND
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Where is Sri Lanka?
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• Key Provinces
• Southern Provinces
• Eastern Provinces
• Northern Provinces

• States to know
• Colombo
• Ratnapura
• Sigiriya
• Kandy
• Trincomalee
• Batticaloa
• Jaffna

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Colombo
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Elephant Orphanage Caring People - Why then
conflict?
No more crowded beaches
Beautiful views- Why then no tourists?
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People of Sri Lanka
The Majority - Sinhalese speak Sinhalese
Buddhists
The Minority- Tamils speak Tamil Hindus ? Sri
Lankan Tamils - descendents of Tamil migrants ?
Indian Tamils - came later, brought in by British
rulers to work in tea plantations live mostly in
North and Eastern coast Jaffna Batticaloa
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The Tooth Relic of the Buddha (widely believed to
be an actual tooth of the Lord Buddha) is carried
in a sacred casket around Kandy.
Vesak Day
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St. Pauls' Church in Kandy
Hindu Temple
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Indian Tamils in Kandy
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Tea plantations of Kandy
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Issues that led to Conflict

• 1 Denying Indian Tamils of citizenship
• Why?
• so that Tamils will not be given voting rights
• and Tamils will not gain political power

BUT Indian Tamils have contributed to
economy worked in tea plantations
1980s Indian Tamils given citizenship but 100
000 still remained stateless
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Issues that led to Conflict
2 Making Sinhala the official language only
language of administration, instead of English
language Why ? Nationalistic feelings to win
support of Sinhalese voters to give Sinhalese
more opportunities to better jobs
BUT made it difficult for Tamils to get
government jobs
Compromise 1978 recognition of Tamil as
national language and language of administration
in Tamil majority areas
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Issues that led to Conflict
3 Higher entry standards for Tamils for
University Admission for engineering courses
Tamils 250 Sinhalese 227 Why ? To allow more
Sinhalese to study engineering medical
courses
BUT more difficult for Tamil students to enter
University
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Issues that led to Conflict

• 4 Resettling Sinhalese in Tamil areas
• Why ?
• To give landless Sinhalese peasants to make a
  living
• To change population representation to increase
  Sinhalese population so that the area becomes
  Sinhalese majority

BUT made Tamils a minority in the area made life
more difficult for Tamils with the coming of the
army and militant monks