Hill Country Tamils of Sri Lanka: Towards Meaningful Citizenship

Abstract

The status of the Hill Country Tamils in Sri Lanka demonstrates that granting formal citizenship to stateless communities alone is inadequate in addressing the structural discrim-ination and historical marginalisation inherent to statelessness. Statelessness fosters further insecurity and disadvantage, and can leave communities vulnerable to new forms of ex-ploitation. In the case of the Hill Country Tamils, statelessness entrenched the three drivers of disadvantage identified in this report: distanc-ing of the state, dependency on the plantation company, and brokerage by plantation trade unions. These structural drivers of disadvantage have persisted despite granting the Hill Coun-try Tamils formal citizenship status. In many respects, they have reproduced the conditions associated with the Hill Country Tamils’ state-lessness, and currently deprive the community from experiencing the full benefits of citizenship (such as stronger protection of rights, political voice, and economic security). This study has accordingly concluded that offering the Hill Country Tamil community a path to sustainable develop-ment—particularly in relation to SDG 10 (re-duced inequalities), SDG 5 (gender equality) and SDG 16 (peace, justice and strong institutions)—requires approaches that aim to transform these drivers of disadvantage. Only through such transformation, can the community transcend the legacy of statelessness and experience meaningful citizenship.