Features The Island 11 Saturday 18th December, 2010 BY GAMINI KEERAWELLA Senior Professor of History, University of Peradeniya T racing the way in which Sri Lanka grappled with the 2004 tsunami and the threat posed by the LTTE is useful to understand the historically conditioned elements of societal resilience in a non-west- ern society, which possesses a weak state along with strong socio-cultural traditions. The experiences relating to the two episodes have underscored the importance of the role of the state as well as the state–civil society relationship. The political will played a cru- cial role in meeting the challenge by mobi- lizing the strengths of societal resilience. Furthermore, it highlighted the need for organic articulation between the agents in both the civil and political domains. The civil domain is an ensemble of social organ- isms commonly identified as ‘non-state’ and the political domain is the totality of the public domain directly or indirectly associ- ated with the state. In order to transform the political will into the national will, an organic articulation between the civil and political domains is essential, and this forges a community of interest vis-a-vis the threat. When the totality of the process is con- sidered, the societal resilience encompassed three main components: (1) preparedness, (2) meeting the challenge, (3) mitigation of effects. In all the three components, the role that the state can play is crucial. However, the sine qua non for this role is the organic link between the political and civil domains. The swift detection of threat and imme- diate communication of it to the relevant authority and the effective relaying of it to the general public constituted a key ele- ment in community involvement in meet- ing the challenge. However, the societal element of preparedness requires differ- ent sets of modus operandi in relation to natural and man-made disasters. In the case of the Elam War, it was a protracted ‘disaster’ situation. The constant vigi- lance against a possible threat at any time and in any place became a part of life, with different degree of intensity depending on the location. The setting up of early-warning mechanisms and the commu- nication of threat to relevant sections remained a part of preparedness. Community involvement remains a crucial factor in this regard and during the period of Eelam War IV,many attempts of the LTTE to create disasters in Colombo and other areas were foiled due to public alert- ness and community surveillance. The working of the early-warning system and the preparedness in relation to natural dis- asters differ somewhat. In the case of natu- ral disasters because the frequency of natu- ral disasters cannot be predicted and fur- ther the constant state of emergency and alertness on the part of the general public is not practicable. In relation to cyclones, floods and tsunamis early warming signals could be transmitted only a few days before them or few hours and not ahead of weeks and months. In meeting the challenge, the social determination to face the challenge and not to withdraw is a key aspect of socie- tal resilience. The modus operandi in facing the challenge is also different in relation to man-made and natural disasters. Meeting the LTTE challenge became more complex because of its ethno-political context. It became necessary to establish the fact that it was not a war against the Tamils in Sri Lanka while at the same time highlighting the determination not to yield to the mili- tary pressure of the LTTE. The LTTE fail- ure to realize the limitations of the use ter- rorism as a political tool and also to utilize the openings given to them to come to a democratic political plane helped the gov- ernment to make this distinction in convinc- ing manner. Some socio-cultural characteristics ingrained in the behavior in Sri Lankan society should be brought into focus in ana- lyzing societal resilience in relations to the three main components discussed above. The extended family and community net- works on the one hand and the readiness to extend help to others in a situation of crisis on the other should be noted in this context. Extended family networks and community self-help contribute to absorb shocks both psychologically and materially. It was clear- ly illustrated in the South in the aftermath of the tsunami. When the Muslims (over 45,000) were chased out from their ancestral villages (Karisal, Tarapuram, Erukulampiddy) in Mannar District in the North by the LTTE giving only a 24 hour ultimatum, many of them were initially accommodated by relatives, friends and fel- low Muslims mainly in Kalpitiya, Anuradhapura and other parts of the island. Furthermore, the remittance of the Tamil diaspora in the West to their relatives in Sri Lanka ensured their existence in the midst of economic devastation in the war- torn North and East. It contributed to a larger extent to maintain a more or less sta- ble GDP growth rate, except in 2001, in the country. The second characteristic ingrained in the cultural behavior is the readiness to forget the past sufferings very easily and to look to the future. The short collective memory of the Sri Lankan people is always referred to in a negative sense. As far as societal resilience in the face of disas- ters is concerned it has some positive aspects too. The third feature is the belief that Sri Lanka cannot be subjugated for long and it would bounce back once again. This belief is especially prevalent among the majority Sinhala people. Accordingly, in understanding socie- tal resilience in Sri Lanka, apart from politi- cal and societal factors, some deep-rooted perceptions and beliefs that make people unshattered in the face of natural and man- made disasters need to be brought to the fore. There is a perception that Sri Lanka is destined to face misfortunes/disasters from time to time but that the country will be able to come out of such predicaments ulti- mately. The belief that the country and its rulers, especially the Sinhala people, descen- dents of King Vijaya, are destined to face misfortunes which have been attributed to the ‘curse made by demon princes Kuveni’ is relevant in this context. The belief fur- ther asserts that Sri Lanka and Sinhala peo- ple can not be subdued due to the fact that the God Uppalavanna had been mandated to give protection to the Island and the Sinhala people by the King of Gods (Sakka). According to the Mahawamsa (Great Chronicle) the Uppalavanna had been entrusted with guardianship of Lanka by Sakka who had been instructed by the Buddha, shortly before his parinibbana. “Uppalavanna ensured this protection by the binding of the sacred thread and the sprinkling of holy water on Vijaya and his band. Kuveni is the Yakka (demon) princess who lured prince Vijaya, the mythical founder of the Sinhala race, into marriage upon his arrival and promised him to obtain a kingdom. She helped Vijaya to kill all the Yakkha who were assembled in their capital for a wedding feast. Kuveni bore him a son and a daughter. Later, on the insistence of his Ministers, Vijaya cast out Kuveni and her two children in order to marry a royal princess from Madurapura, South India. Being disheartened by the broken promise, Kuveni cursed Vijaya and used her magical weapon to kill him. According to the leg- end, the Kuveni’s curse haunted Vijaya’s descendents for generations. According to the story of Kohomba Kankariya (ritual healing), Vijaya’s successor, King Panduvasadeva also became ill because of Kuveni’s revenge. It is on the advice of the god that the ritual healing of Kohomba Kankariya was performed to cure the king, dispelling the curse. Kuveni Asna (Message of Kuveni), written during the Dambadeniya period after the Kalinga Magha’s invasion in 1215 gives a vivid pic- ture of Kuveni’s lamentation. For centuries Kohomba Kankariya was the most impor- tant ritual in Kandyan villages. These his- torical myths and rituals had deep cultural significance in the face of calamities and linger in the contemporary social psyche through songs and such other expressions. It may have generated a feeling of confi- dence that the country cannot be subjugated and that it will soon be rejuvenated as des- tined. However, societal resilience cannot be understood only in socio-cultural terms. In the present context, technological backing and institutional network play a crucial role in ensuring societal resilience. The true social potential could be mobilized only through institutional structures, both for- mal and informal. Technology at all levels plays a crucial role in enhancing societal resilience. From early detection of threats and preparing the people for the impending threat, and for a wider cross-section of peo- ple to meet the threat, the role that as advanced and people-friendly communica- tion technology can play is crucial. Accordingly, societal resilience in any his- torical situation could be understood in rela- tion to three elements: socio-cultural milieu (social ecology), technological backing and institutional arrangement. The variations of vitality of societal resilience are conditional to the activation and effective use of its main elements in a given situation. In other words, societal resilience can be significantly enhanced by effective use of technological advances backed by efficient use of institutional and social networks. Rohan Samarajiva, who studied the lessons of the 2004 tsunami for mobilizing communication technologies for effective disaster warning states “One clear lesson is that effective disaster warning requires greater access to ITCs in general as a necessary condition. In the absence of proper institutional structures, it is unlikely that a significant number of lives could have been saved; however, all the institutional structures in the world cannot help unless the basic instruments exist for linking the physical world in which hazards occur and the symbolic worlds where action origi- nates.” Societal resilience can be enhanced by proper utilization of the three factors. The role of social cultural factors could be understood in the social ecology encompass- ing the dynamics of human-‘environment’ interaction which included the historical, social, cultural and institutional setup in which people live. When we take a broader historical per- spective, a key factor in societal resilience is the ability of a society to adapt to changed environments. This is particularly impor- tant in gaining long-term resilience in the face of socially constructed man-made dis- asters such as civil wars and rebellions. A key aspect of adaptability is accommoda- tion. Sri Lanka as a small island located cen- trally at the southern tip of South Asia link- ing practically the eastern and western planks in the Indian Ocean had been exposed to many social, cultural and politi- cal forces and learnt by experience how to ensure existence and maintain identity while accommodating diverse forces. Buddhism, the faith of the majority, which professed tolerance, granted a sufficient flexibility to accommodate diversity.In the post-colonial context, the historically condi- tioned societal resilience is not reflected in the post-independent state. In order to achieve resilience in this arena it is impera- tive to accommodate diversity in the politi- cal domain by restructuring the state. CONCLUDED The writer can be contacted by keer- [email protected] Continued from yesterday Societal Resilience: - Part Three Picture depicting King Vijaya and Kuveni Social Ecology and Societal Resilience