In Northern Sri Lanka, Local Governments Prepare for Post-War Development
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010By Nilan Fernando and Maria Merla Aquino
Although the civil war in Sri Lanka’s Northern Province ended in May 2009, decades of armed conflict have damaged the relationship between state and civil society, between the government and the governed.
Because of the war, elections for municipal councils, urban councils, and pradeshiya sabhas (local authorities that mostly govern in rural areas) in the North have been few and far between. Nevertheless, administrative staff of these local authorities remained in place and – despite limited capacity and resources – worked to provide necessary services for a semblance of local governance; but clearly much has been neglected. With the war’s end, the Province is beginning to recover. The first local authority elections since the war ended were held in 2009 for the Jaffna Municipal Council (won by the government party, the United Peoples Freedom Alliance) and the Vavuniya Urban Council (won by the Tamil National Alliance). It was the first election to the Jaffna MC since 1998 and the first election to the Vavuniya UC since 1994. Elections for the 32 other local councils in the North as well as for the provincial council are likely be held in late 2010.
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A combination of factors, including erosion, heavy rains, and urbanization, have greatly increased the risk of landslides in the area, making residents of Nuwara Eliya vulnerable. In January, 2007 alone, for example, landslides and flooding displaced over 18,000 people from Walapane and Hanguranketha, resulting in a massive need for shelter and aid. While immediate aid is obviously crucial, much of the area’s infrastructure and morale was also badly damaged, making long-term, post-disaster rehabilitation and development essential.
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