There was a particularly vicious comment left by anon on one of RD’s posts, which got me thinking about this whole ‘being Lankan’ business. Seems like many people have an issue with someone calling themselves Sri Lankan, if they don’t currently live in the country. I remember reading replies to comments left by N on political posts that say non too clearly that, if you don’t live in the country, you don’t get to have an opinion. Over the summer someone said something similar to me, why should I care since I don’t even live there anymore.
Quite frankly, I have trouble understanding the reasoning behind this. Do you really think that just because you leave a country, you can forget or ignore where you were born and raised? Or just because you weren't born someplace, you can't call it home? That the place where you’re family is from, and your blood, isn't home? If anything, I find that being away makes me miss home more and appreciate everything more; the food, the people, the places, the atmosphere. If anything, it’s made me strongly patriotic, and I wasn’t one to begin with. I read the news more, to find out what’s been happening at home; I talk more when someone asks me what it’s like there; I remember more every time I leave.
The issue of nationality and identity is very personal, I feel, and is different according to the individual. For instance, I don’t really like to consider myself Sinhalese anymore, since there seems to be such a disparity between Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim. I’m Sri Lankan through and through, and that’s all I’ll ever say. I also hear the ‘oh now do you think you’re American’ line. No, I do not. No doubt I’ve adopted some aspects of the country I live in, and I make no apologies for it. I enjoy cultural assimilation; I enjoy the combination of two or more cultures and the twists they give each other. The world would be a far more interesting place if we didn’t insist on forging singular, specific identities, and learnt to incorporate the world into ourselves.
So I fail to see how one person tries to assess whether another is Sri Lankan or not. What makes one person ‘more’ Sri Lankan than another, and how can you even quantify such a thing? Trying to insult someone by using the ‘oh you’re not even Sri Lankan’ line, is about as lame an insult as you can dish out, and to me, it just portrays your inferiority and lack of self identity, and complete ignorance about what being Sri Lankan truly means.
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16 comments:
You can't really say someone would have a connection unless they were actually born and lived in Sri Lanka for a while, can you?
If you were, say, born in Mexico to SL parents, I doubt the kid would have much emotional ties to his parents motherland. that is, unless the parents themselves foster it in him/her.
I think it's a Sri Lankan mentality thing, to diss folk when it comes to debates because they have nothing better to counter an argument with. Yes I realise this is a sweeping generalisation so BOCTAOE. I find N especially articulate when it comes to these random political posts and comments he authors (no he didn't pay me to say that in fact I hope he doesn't see this and get overly chuffed!). I guess the dude N argues with feels particularly stung to be put down quite so elegantly so he (the dude) hits back with the 'well you don't live here, wtf do you know' last resort, a particularly pathetic caveat.
WRT to how *I* feel about the whole Sri Lankan identity thing...too complicated, most of the time I feel like a misfit wherever I am, be it SL or UK or even when I lived in the US so I try not to think about it too much:)
A simple question.
If you carry Sri Lankan papers (passport, etc..), and if you pay tax to Sri Lankan government, You are a Sri Lankan.
If you carry Sri Lankan papers, but if you do not pay taxes, you are a thief.
If you do not carry Sri Lankan documents, and still fall in love with the place, you are an admirer. After all even technically married people can care about other woman. Isn’t it?
You are Quite correct T, once you're outside Sri Lanka only you realise how much you are missing. It is literally a Paradise Lost!
And that is why we so tenuously hang on to the bits that still connect us with the Island. We may be thousands of miles away from here in Body but for most expatriates our souls still lie in our motherland.
"Home is where the heart is..."
An emotional but nevertheless another reason why you are still SRi Lankan!
I value the insight of the diaspora most of the time.
But when someone tells us to continue the war at all costs (to the LTTE or the government) while they cowardly flee above to safer grounds, the most polite thing to say would be to STFU and mind your own business.
So I guess the answer really lies in the context of the argument.
I like ur attitude of calling yourself a 'Sri Lanka' rather than a 'Sinhalese'. Somehow, I feel the same. It is time we thought of ourselves as Sri Lankan.
Nice post.
I'm here in Sri Lanka, getting a little sick and tired of it, but nonetheless, if I happen to move on abroad, I'll immediately miss Sri Lanka. That's the way of things. You only really appreciate it when it's not there - which also leads to idealism and romanticism admittedly.
I frankly tire of the 'are you really Sri Lankan?' argument. If I think myself as such, shouldn't that be the end of the dicussion? And frankly, just because I may or may not live abroad does not detract from that. I'll still religiously check on the cricket, cook myself a rice and curry practically every day, try and procure a bottle of Old Reserve wherever possible, and follow events back home with interest ranging from obsessive to avid, very rarely passing.
And it has nothing to do with which papers or passport you hold.
I think the identity issue is about the feelings of the individual. Sam's "simple" answer may be good for him but I don't agree with it.
I've noticed that many people who are Sri Lankan and live in Sri Lanka seem incredibly reluctant to accept advice or opinion from others; it those who don't live there. It's probaby a characteristic shared by many other nationalities too, but very noticeable in SL, because there are so many opinions about the war / peace situation.
To extend Sam's example a bit - you can have papers that say you're married. I'm told you may even have to pay taxes of a sort for the privilege. But your bond (be it to a spouse,a family or a country) evolves when you go through shared experiences that no one else can really understand. One example, there was a tag recently on Achcharu (Kotahena Hullo Kotahena) that was side-splittingly funny to Sri Lankans TV viewers of a certain age. Maybe it's just me, but if someone likes the Sri Lankan club, yeah - why not let them in instead of finding a reason to bounce them at the gate? Someone says they're Sri Lankan, I'll take their word for it. They want to vote too? Well, someone else will have to check your documents in that case.
With that said, RD, I mean this in the nicest possible way - but I think "many Sri Lankans" would be equally reluctant to accept advice from others about most personal matters, and yes stuff that happens in your country is about as up close and personal as it gets. We've lived with the war for long enough to see ceasefires come and go, one side score a victory and then the other side score one. Some of us even remember previous ceasefires. It's not like the bleedingly obvious "I know! Let's stop killing each other!" approach seems to work for very long.
R, so are you saying that you only value the insight of the diaspora when they prop up your own opinion? Me, I think Sri Lankans and diaspora alike should shut the hell up unless they're in the armed forces or in the LTTE. I mean, how dare people in Colombo speak from (relatively) safe ground when people are actually dying in the FDLs? (yes, that is sarcasm, thanks for noticing)
I've noticed that people aren't shy about accusing others of being a [mahinda-ranil] supporter (or saying you don't live here, what do you know?) if you don't rush to support their political views too. Perhaps it's not really about nationality after all?
Sorry, long ass comment.
Drac,
Yep. I'd probably say that to the people in Colombo too. To a lesser degree.
I met a strong JVP supporter before the 2005 election who was in the opinion of annihilating the LTTE completely. After a bizzare turn of events, he ended up working for the UN office in a Wawniya village where the population was 99% Tamil. He came back completely changed saying that we should exercise peaceful solutions.
I'm NOT talking about politics. I'm talking about the war. About the mothers who have lost their sons, about the children who have lost their fathers, and the people who rot in refugee camps while we take for granted the lives we live without the constant stench of death.
Some people don't understand without seeing it for their own eyes.
The person is still in favour of the JVP, even though he doesn't like their policy on war.
(Hope that helped)
Drac - I think one of the things that frustrates me is when I'm told, or it's implied, that I can't hold a valid opinion about Sri Lanka's conflict because I'm not "Sri Lankan" enough.
I was there in July '83, I've been there and spent so much time there that I feel that I have every right to an opinion, although I'm happy to be wrong or disagreed with.
jester: id say you can. again, you're trying to quantify someone's emotion and say well i have more cuz i live here. connections can be made in all sorts of ways.
darwin: true, it seems a very 'i know you are but what am i' type lameass comeback.
Sam: thats a very technical way of looking at it, and doesnt deal with the heart of the matter at all. a paper doesnt make u sri lankan, trust me.
HD: agreed!
R: i dont understand that kind of arguing. do u mean that if we are not in direct contact with the situation, we should refrain from saying anything? if that were the case, then only the people living in the actual war zones should have a say. colombo is relatively safer than jaffna, for instance, so then they prob want you to STFU too.
i also think you're making a sweeping generaliation in talking about people cowardly fleeing to safer ground. i dont see how you're in any position to talk about why people leave. and if you think that just because we arn't at home in sl, we dont care and that we dont constantly worry about the people at home, then you are sadly mistaken.
Buddhika: yeah, im just more comfortable this way.
TLF: i totally agree. if i consider myself a SLan, no one should need to challenge me on who i am.
RD: yeah, the quickest way to eliminate an opposing opinion is to make it seem likes your's doesnt count. a rather childish attempt, imo.
drac: the whole papers and passport thing is all about technicalities and legalities, which isnt what i was really getting at. the heart of it, and the feelings, matter more to me. and yeah, that sri lankan club thing is a great analogy. it isnt an exclusive club, what the hell do you achieve by keeping someone out?
Why thank you Darwin! I’m blushing a bit:)
My opinion on being Sri Lankan is here. And I still stand by it, there is more to being Sri Lankan than a label, fluency in a language or a passport. It’s indefinable and inclusive, not narrow and exclusive. Also note that I’m not a patriot, I don’t think Sri Lanka is the ‘best’ country in the world. But it’s home and just like family you accept that, warts and all.
T,
Who am I to say that you should or shouldn't say anything? You have the freedom of speech, so use it. I didn't say that you don't care about the country either.
And who said my comment was an argument? I wrote down the reaction that I'd give to an advocate of war so that you would better understand how people think.
N,
The link doesn't work.
sorry, this is the right link
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