Dhammika Herath

University of Peradeniya | UOP · Department of Sociology

Outcomes of resettlement are indeed very important and deservedly receive most attention in academic studies, yet, in this chapter, we examine a relatively less-researched aspect of the process of “displacement and resettlement” as there is a serious knowledge gap on “doing and living” displacement and resettlement. We bring in a comparative dimens...

This special issue addresses the connections and crossroads between knowledge and resistance. In the current political landscape, such a research endeavour is both topical and needed. Social media platforms, like Facebook, and the development of new technologies have made it possible to spread disinformation through political channels, which has la...

This article illustrates how official hegemonic narratives of armed conflicts and history are resisted by academics by generating counter-narratives and how this affects the public perception of identity conflicts. Due to the relatively high status of academics, critical and alternative knowledge production serve as a tool for resistance against th...

Radicalised Buddhist movements in Sri Lanka and Myanmar have been prominent as drivers of mistrust, tensions and violence directed against Muslim minorities, particularly since the mid-2010s. This article seeks to understand why ordinary monks, who exert tremendous influence in these societies, have developed anti-Muslim sentiments and even endorse...

Corruption is endemic, pervasive and embedded in the very fabric in social life in some societies, although its degree varies case to case. Previous academic research and anti-corruption watchdogs have examined corruption in Sri Lanka, where corruption is perceived to be pervasive and endemic but, existing studies are inadequate to explain why corr...

This social Impact Assessment (SIA) is undertaken as an integral part of the proposal to establish a Problem Elephant Rehabilitation Center (PERC) within the Lunugamwehera National Park (LNP) under a credit line extended by the World Bank to the Government of Sri Lanka (Under the subproject proposal ESCAMP/DWC/EHGLUNUGAMWEHERA/2B-02). Elephants are...

This paper examines the causal relationship between social capital and development in micro settings at a time of violent conflict by taking a case study of six villages in the north of Sri Lanka. The rich and vast literature on social capital has documented the causal linkages between social capital and the various social and economic outcomes, wh...

For almost a decade, Colombo has been the site of a massive urban regeneration programme driven by the public and the private sectors. One of the main components of this regeneration programme has been the involuntary acquisition of land from slum communities and subsequent resettlement of slum dwellers in multi-storied housing complexes. How does...

It is widely recognized that corruption risks undermining state legitimacy, diminishing trust and reducing resources for reconstruction in the aftermath of war. This article aims to advance the understanding of corruption in post-war societies by examining how local experiences of corruption relate to ethnic and other divides in Sri Lanka, where a...

There is a growing academic literature on both land and corruption in relation to post-conflict peace building. This paper aims to understand what role corruption complaints play in the nexus between land and grievances in post-conflict societies. Drawing on field material collected in Sri Lanka, the paper interrogates the role of corruption compla...

Like most other concepts in the social sciences, ‘development’ does not entail a commonly agreed upon meaning, context or programme of action. It is defined in different ways depending on the time, space, context, professional and organisational interests of the one who does the business of defining. The meaning of development has also undergone a...

This paper discusses the discourses of the globalisation theorists and dependency scholars in respect of their views on development and underdevelopment. The paper argues that there are underlying similarities between the central concepts of the dependency approach and globalisation theories. Some of the globalisation theorists come remarkably clos...