Persistence versus obduracy: human rights, literature, media and Sri Lanka

Abstract

Abstract

It has been more than five years since the end of the bloody three decade ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka and that island nation is seemingly on the road towards national reconciliation. Yet literary writings, exposure in the media on the goings on thanks to numerous reports from non-governmental organizations and analysis in the media itself have to a very large extent featured on the issue of human rights especially as it pertained to wanton death and destruction in the last five months of the civil war-January to May 2009. Interestingly but not coincidentally, the more persistent literary writers and projections in the media have been against human rights violations, the more obdurate have the powers-that-be have become to the point that meaningful debate has become a thing of the past, if that situation ever existed.