Ritual and Recovery in Post-Conflict Sri Lanka

In June 2009 after thirty years of war, the Sri Lankan government declared an end to hostilities with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The long-standing insurgency came to a dramatic and sudden conclusion, following the death of the LTTE's leader, and most of the upper echelons of the militant organisation. The state of the militancy is currently unclear and surrounded by rumours as to who remains in power and what role the Diaspora has in the future of any Tamil political influence. This raises a corresponding question in relation to the multiple and complex processes of recovery in the aftermath of such an inconclusive war. The book examines efforts made by Tamil civilians caught in the midst of this conflict, to live with the devastation, seeking to understand how civilian lives had changed through an exploration of performance and religious devotion. The chapterss provide an in depth account of this segregated region, the events that lead to the conflict, and the impact this had for Tamil civilians who lived with the daily realities of war for over two decades. It also questions the efficacy of applying psycho-social models of recovery, in non-western settings: these are models that continue to be used by the multitudinous western aid agencies operating in Sri Lanka. This book makes a claim for more culturally specific understandings of what constitutes 'efficacy' in relation to managing suffering.