By: Staff Writer
February 15, Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka’s call for colonial-era reparations has reignited debates over history, justice, and accountability. While the Foreign Minister pushes for compensation from former imperial powers and the return of cultural artifacts, experts warn against overstating colonial responsibility for modern economic failures.
Historical Context Matters
The debate mirrors India’s well-known reparations argument popularized by Shashi Tharoor. India suffered dramatic economic decline under British rule, losing industrial capacity, enduring famines, and seeing literacy and life expectancy stagnate. These claims are evidence-based and historically verifiable.
Sri Lanka’s Unique Colonial Experience
Sri Lanka’s pre-colonial economy, however, was never globally dominant. While British policies distorted land use and economic priorities, historians find no evidence of large-scale industrial collapse or engineered famine comparable to India. Experts highlight that post-independence governance failures including fiscal mismanagement, corruption, weak institutions, and ethnically driven policy decisions are far more significant drivers of the country’s current crises.
Targeted Reparations for Indian Tamil Workers
A defensible claim exists in the case of Indian Tamil estate workers. Brought to Sri Lanka under harsh colonial labor conditions, they endured starvation wages, poor housing, and systemic exclusion from citizenship and political rights after independence. Their intergenerational suffering is directly linked to colonial policies and post-independence state neglect.
Cultural Restitution Remains Valid
Meanwhile, efforts to reclaim Sri Lankan artifacts from British museums remain a legitimate, separate pursuit. Returning these objects can bolster cultural identity and advance historical justice.
Conclusion
Analysts argue that credible engagement with history requires separating colonial exploitation from post-independence mismanagement. By focusing on evidence-based reparations claims and confronting domestic governance failures honestly, Sri Lanka can strengthen its moral and historical credibility, avoid importing narratives from other countries, and pursue both justice and cultural restitution effectively.
