Chapter 4: (2) Causes of the Sri Lankan conflict

Why are the Sinhalese and Tamils in conflict?


Basically, it's because of unfair treatment! There are 2 time periods you can compare: before Sri Lanka became independent, and after independence.

• Before independence: British Colonial Rule --> Tamils were favored
• After independence: Sri Lankan Rule --> Sinhalese were favored

There are 4 policies which were unfair and which are identified as the causes of the conflict.

#1: Citizenship rights (1948)

To be stateless means that the Indian Tamils now did not have basic rights such as education, jobs, housing and voting.


India tried to help these Indian Tamils who were stateless.
What did they do?
Was it successful?











#2: 'Sinhala Only' policy (1956)


A peaceful demonstration against the Official Language Act was disrupted by supporters of the Sinhala language.


Rioting occured and over a hundered deaths resulted.


Although Tamil was made the language of a national minority in 1957, tension between the Sinhalese and Tamils continued to increase.



This led to more fighting and deaths. :(












#3: University admission criteria (1972)


After independence, Tamils had to score higher than Sinhalese students to enter the same university courses!


A fixed number of places were also reserved for the Sinhalese.


This meant that admission was no longer based on academic results.



This system is still in place today!

#4: Resettlement (1950)


Before independence:

• Indian Tamils: highland districts
• Sri Lankan Tamils: Jaffna Peninsula

After independence in the 1950s:

• Sinhalese peasants were transferred to these Tamil areas
• Buddhisti monks and the Sri Lankan Army also came to occupy their lands
• i.e. the Tamils were chased and driven out of their homes and land!!
  

Conclusion

Chapter 4: (1) Introduction to conflict in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka
Located at the southern tip of India, it’s a tropical island like Singapore.
On 22 May 1072, Ceylon was renamed Sri Lanka which means ‘beautiful island’ in Sinhala.


To have a better understanding of the conflict in Sri Lanka, you need to know more about its people. The 2 main groups of people in this conflict are the Sinhalese and the Tamils.

1. Sinhalese: majority in Sri Lanka, speak Sinhala
2. Tamils: minority in Sri Lanka, speak Tamil, can be subdivided into 2 groups (look at figure below)
   

This chapter is indeed very exciting and it's one of my favorite! Lots of photos and videos can be found to make this chapter come alive. SO, have fun learning this chapter! =)

To start, watch this video to get an overview of the Sri Lankan conflict.

Chapter 3: (6) SEQs on Healthcare

In the course of your preparation, try to see if you can answer these SEQs. Just try drawing a mindmap to answer each of these questions! Practice makes perfect! =)

Healthcare in Singapore

1. To what extent will means-testing help in keeping healthcare affordable in Singapore? Explain your answer.

2. 'The best way to manage healthcare is to encourage individual responsibility.' How far do you agree with this statement? Explain your answer.

Healthcare in Britain

1. 'The idea of a Welfare State is wrong’. How far do you agree with this statement? Explain your answer.

2. To what extent were the problems of the welfare state due to the ‘why work attitude? Explain your answer.

3. Here are three causal factors for the British government’s decision to move away from welfare state system.
- Why work attitude
- Businesses driven away
- Increased government spending
Which do you consider to be the most important reason? EYA.

4. Do you agree that the British policy of a welfare state is a failure? EYA.

Chapter 3: (5) Managing the NHS

Introduction

With rising healthcare costs, the need to provide high quality healthcare in a welfare system has become more difficult. In this section, we will see the 3 ways the British government has managed the NHS.


#1: Managing government spending

If healthcare costs increase, the government has to collect more taxes to pay for healthcare!

So, in 1980s, the govt tried to cut back on government spending.


However, there was a fear among the British people that the NHS would not be able to provide free and quality healthcare services if govt spending on healthcare was reduced. This was something the British were NOT willing to accept!!



In 2000, PM Tony Blair promised that the government would increase public spending on healthcare and improve the NHS. However, this increase was accompanied by increases in National Insurance contributions in 2003.


Why would such increases in National Insurance contributions be necessary??


#2: Increasing efficiency
















#3: Providing quality service