Sri Lanka

Articles about Sri Lanka`s current defence status. These awards are voted on by special committees, rather than by the Academy membership as a whole. Statistics on Civilians Affected by War in Northeast 1974-2004 A Full Report in 11 pages. It must also exist either on a 35mm or 70mm film print OR on a 24fps or 48fps progressive scan digital film print with a native resolution no lower than 1280x1024. A cease-fire was declared in 2002, but renewed violence in late 2005 led to fears of a renewed civil war. [1] Rule 2 states that a film must be "feature-length" (defined as 40 minutes) to qualify for an award (except for Short Subject awards, of course). It is estimated that the war has left 65,000 people dead since 1983 and caused great harm to the population and economy of the country. Today, according to Rules 2 and 3 of the official Academy Awards Rules, a film has to open in the previous calendar year (from midnight January 1 to midnight December 31) in Los Angeles County, California, to qualify.

Since 1983, there has been on-and-off civil war, mostly between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, or the LTTE, who want to create an independent Tamil Eelam state in the northeast of the island. The ceremony has consecutively aired on ABC since 1976. The ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka is an ongoing conflict between the majority Sinhalese and minority Tamils on the island-nation of Sri Lanka. The ceremony and extravagant afterparties, including the Academy's Governors Ball, are televised around the world. See Ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. This is an elaborate extravaganza, with the invited guests walking up the red carpet in the creations of the most prominent fashion designers of the day. While Islam and Christianity (including 6% Catholics and 1% Protestants) represent 8% and 7% of the population respectively. The major awards are given out at a ceremony usually in March following the relevant calendar year.

Buddhism (69%) and Hinduism (15.5%) are the dominant religions. In fact, the Academy's domain name is oscars.org and the official website for the Academy Awards is at oscars.com. Smaller minorities include (mostly Sunni) Muslims (7%), mostly of mixed Arab, Persian, Tamil and Sinhalese origins and Malay descent, Burghers of mixed European descent (1%) and the Wanniyala-Aetto or Veddahs, the few remaining descendants of earlier cultures. However it became, the nickname stuck and is used almost as commonly as Academy Award, even by the Academy itself. All three languages are used in education and administration. Some believe it comes from Academy librarian Margaret Herrick, who saw it on a table and said, "it looks just like my uncle Oscar!" Others claim that Bette Davis named it after her first husband. English, the link language in the present constitution, is spoken competently by about 10% of the population, and is widely understood. The root of the name "Oscar" is contested.

Both Sinhala and Tamil are official languages. The official name of the Oscar statuette is the "Academy Award of Merit." Made of gold-plated britannium, it is 13.5 inches (34 cm) tall and depicts a knight holding a crusader's sword standing on a reel of film. Tamils comprise two communities: Native Tamils and more recent immigrants from India called as Indian Origin Tamils. . Tamils constitute 18%, are predominantly Hindu, and live mostly in the north, east and central provinces. The most recent awards were the 77th Academy Awards. About 74% of Sri Lankans are Sinhalese, most of them Buddhist, mostly following the Theravada tradition. Actors (with a membership of 1,311) make up the largest voting bloc.

Assimilation and intermixing has produced a group of people who are marginaly different from each other irrespective of current racial claims. The Awards are granted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, a professional honorary organization which as of 2003 had a voting membership of 5,816. Racial identities in Sri Lanka do not represent the genetic heritage. The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent film awards in the United States and arguably the world. In December 2005, Sri Lanka received its first international credit rating with Fitch Ratings assigning it a BB- (a rating held by Brazil and Indonesia among others). Academy Award statistics: Directors receiving 3 or more nominations. A September 2005 IMF report called for an end to 'fiscal domination' of monetary policy and more independence for the Central Bank so that inflation could be contained. Academy Award statistics: Actors receiving 2 or more awards.

The tsunami helped stabilize the deterioration of macro-economic fundamentals as foreign debt relief and assistance from the International Monetary Fund strengthened both the external sector and fiscal operations. Academy Award statistics: Actors receiving 5 or more nominations. But GDP growth, which had climbed to 6.4% by the first quarter of 2004 had fallen to 4.8% by the first quarter of 2005. Academy Award statistics: Films receiving awards for Best Picture, Directing, Actor, Actress and Writing. The December 26th Tsunami brought aidflows, and support from the IMF helped improve sentiment in the foreign exchange market. Academy Award statistics: Films receiving 10 or more nominations. By December 2004, the country was heading for a balance of payments crisis, as the currency depreciated and reserves dwindled. Academy Juvenile Award – 1934 to 1960.

The expansionary fiscal policy, coupled with loose monetary policy eventually drove inflation up to 18% by January 2005, as measured by the Sri Lanka Consumer Price Index. Sawyer Award. To finance the expanded budget deficit arising from a range of subsidies and a public sector recruitment drive, the government eventually had to print Rs 65 bn (US$ 650 mn) or around 3% of GDP. Gordon E. In 2004 alone Sri Lanka spent approximately US$ 180 mn on a fuel subsidy, as fixing fuel prices was an election promise. The Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. But this policy of subsidizing imported commodities like fuel, fertilizer and wheat, soon unravelled the fiscal sector. Thalberg Memorial Award – 1938 to present.

Its main theme to support the rural and suburban SMEs and protect the domestic economy from external influences, such as oil prices, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. The Irving G. The new government stopped the privatization of state enterprises, reforms of state utilities such as power and petroleum and embarked on an unprecedented subsidy program called the Rata Perata economic program. Academy Special Achievement Award. In April 2004, there was a sharp reversal in economic policy after the government headed by Ranil Wickremesinghe from the United National Party was defeated by a coalition made up of Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the left-nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna called the United People's Freedom Alliance. Academy Honorary Award – 1928 to present. The Colombo stock exchange reported the highest growth in Asia for 2003, and today Sri Lanka has the highest per capita income in South Asia. Unique and Artistic Production – 1928 only.

Signs of recovery appeared after the government and the LTTE signed the 2002 ceasefire. Best Title Writing – 1928 only. 2001 saw the first economic contraction in the country's history, due to a combination of power shortages, budgetary problems, the global slowdown, and continuing civil strife. Best Story – 1928 to 1956. The economy rebounded in 1997-2000, with average growth of 5.3%. Short Film - Novelty – 1932 to 1935. The GDP grew at an average annual rate of 5.5% during the early 1990s, until a drought and a deteriorating security situation lowered growth to 3.8% in 1996. Best Short Film - Live Action - 2 Reels – 1936 to 1956.

By 1996, plantation crops made up only 20% of exports (compared with 93% in 1970), while textiles and garments 63%. Best Short Film - Color – 1936 and 1937. While tea and rubber are still important, the most dynamic sectors are now food processing, textiles and apparel, food and beverages, telecommunications, insurance, and banking. Engineering Effects – 1928 only. From independence, till 1977, it was a strongly socialist economy but since then it has been increasingly pursuing privatization, market-oriented policies and export-oriented trade. Best Dance Direction – 1935 to 1937. Sri Lanka is historically famous for its cinnamon and tea (introduced by the British in the 19th century). Comedy Direction – 1928 only.

See Endemic Birds of the Indian Subcontinent for more information. Best Assistant Director – 1933 to 1937. Sri Lanka is a centre of bird endemism. Writing Original Screenplay – 1940 to present. The island has three biosphere reserves, Hurulu (established 1977), Sinharaja (established 1978), and Kanneliya-Dediyagala-Nakiyadeniya (KDN) (established 2004). Writing Adapted Screenplay – 1928 to present. Several preserves have been established to protect some of Sri Lanka's remaining natural areas. Visual Effects – 1939 to present.

These forests have been largely cleared for agriculture, timber or grazing, and many of the dry evergreen forests have been degraded to thorn scrub, savanna, or thickets. Academy Award, Scientific or Technical – 1931 to present at three levels. The Sri Lanka dry-zone dry evergreen forests are a tropical dry broadleaf forest ecoregion, which, like the neighboring East Deccan dry evergreen forests of India's Coromandel Coast, is characterized by evergreen trees, rather than the dry-season deciduous trees that predominate in most other tropical dry broadleaf forests. Sound Effects Editing – 1963 to present. The north and east are considerably drier, lying in the rain shadow of the central highlands. Sound. Both these tropical moist forest ecoregions are very similar to those of India's Western Ghats. Live Action Short Film.

At higher elevations they transition to the Sri Lanka montane rain forests. Animated Short Film – 1931 to present. The southwest, where the influence of the moisture-bearing southwest monsoon is strongest, is home to the Sri Lanka lowland rain forests. Best Song. Its forests are among the most floristically rich in Asia and for some faunal groups, it has the world's highest density of species diversity. Original Music Score. Sri Lanka is one of the world's bio-diversity hot-spots. Makeup – 1981 to present.

Other major cities include Jaffna, Galle, and Kandy. Best Foreign Language Film – 1947 to present. The commercial capital is Colombo, but the administrative and legislative capital is at nearby Sri Jayewardanapura (Kotte). Film Editing – 1935 to present. The lowest gravitational field on Earth lies just off the coast of Sri Lanka. Documentary Short Subject. The climate is tropical, characterized by monsoons: the northeast monsoon lasts from December to March, the southwest June to October. Documentary Feature.

Amongst these are Sri Pada and the highest point Pidurutalagala (also known as Mt Pedro), at 2,524 m. Directing – 1928 to present. The pear-shaped island consists mostly of flat-to-rolling coastal plains, with mountains rising only in the south-central part. Costume Design – 1948 to present. According to temple records, this natural causeway was formerly complete, but was breached by a violent storm (probably a cyclone) in 1480. Best Cinematography – 1928 to present. Often referred to as Adam's Bridge, it is now mostly submerged, with only a chain of limestone shoals remaining above sea level. Best Art Direction – 1928 to present (also called Interior or Set Decoration).

According to Hindu mythology, a land bridge to the Indian mainland, known as Rama's Bridge, was constructed during the time of Rama. Best Animated Feature – 2001 to present. It is separated from the Indian subcontinent by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait. Best Supporting Actress – 1936 to present. The island of Sri Lanka lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal. Best Supporting Actor – 1936 to present.
. Best Actress – 1928 to present.

Sri Lanka consists of 8 provinces:. Best Actor – 1928 to present. See also: Sri Lankan parliamentary election, 2004. Best Picture – 1928 to present. At the close of 2005, deep political unease and suspicion remained between the two factions. But these hopes were dashed by almost immediate accusations of bias and favouritism on the part of international aid agencies from both sides.

There were high hopes that the devastating Tsunami of December 2004 would force the government and Tamil rebels into a new, lasting dialogue to address the serious effects of the disaster on Sri Lanka as a whole. The LTTE boycotted the election, thereby preventing thousands of Tamils from voting, and so Wickremasinghe from taking power, whose election promises included a Federal state to the North and East. His narrow victory was engineered by the the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) who want Tamil Eelam to be an independent country. Rajapaksa offers less autonomy than Wickremasinghe to the northeast, home to most of Sri Lanka's 3.2 million ethnic Tamils.

He was previously Prime Minister in 2000. Ratnasiri Wickremanayake was appointed the 22nd Prime Minister on November 21, 2005, to fill the post vacated by Rajapaksa. Rajapaksa took oath as President on November 19, 2005. The Election was held on November 17, 2005, and Mahinda Rajapaksa was elected the fifth Executive President of Sri Lanka with a 50.29% of valid votes, compared to Ranil Wickremesinghe's 48.43%.

Mahinda Rajapaksa was nominated the SLFP candidate and former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe UNP candidate. In August 2005, the Supreme Court ruled that Presidential Elections would be held in November 2005, resolving a long-running dispute on the length of President Kumaratunga's term. Elections were held on April 02 and the new Parliament convened on April 23 and elected Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Prime Minister. Parliament was dissolved on February 07, 2004 by President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga.

Since its independence in 1948, Sri Lanka has remained a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. Parliament reserves the power to make all laws. The president may summon, suspend, or end a legislative session and dissolve parliament any time after it has served for one year. The primary modification is that the party that receives the largest number of valid votes in each constituency gains a unique "bonus seat" (see Hickman, 1999).

Members are elected by universal (adult) suffrage based on a modified proportional representation system by district to a six-year term. The Sri Lankan Parliament is a unicameral 225-member legislature. The President's deputy is the Prime Minister, who leads the ruling party in Parliament. The President appoints and heads a Cabinet of Ministers responsible to Parliament.

The incumbent may be removed from office by a two-thirds vote of Parliament, with the agreement by the Supreme Court. The President is responsible to Parliament for the exercise of duties in accordance with the Constitution and laws. The President of the Republic is directly elected for a six-year term and serves as Head of State, Head of Government and Commander in Chief of the armed forces. It was rumored that the LTTE themselves did the killing.

In December 2005, following a brutal gang rape and murder of a Tamil woman (Ilayathambi Tharsini)(such incidents have happened before, including Krishanti Kumaraswamy), restive civilian groups likely encouraged and controlled by the LTTE carried out a series of attacks against Government forces in the North and East, and some unknown forces assassinated a pro-LTTE Tamil politician on Christmas eve in a Catholic church. It has been alleged that only 17% of the relief aid has been spent on what it was intended for. Several Sinhala nationalist groups in the South challenged this pact and the Supreme Court declared that some articles of the pact were unconstitutional. On June 24, 2005, the Government signed the Post Tsunami Operational Management Structure (P-TOMS), a legal instrument for the Government to share aid with the LTTE.

Over 40,000 people died on the island and many more are still missing. On December 26, 2004, an earthquake off the western coast of Sumatra created tsunamis that washed over the Eastern and Southern coasts of Sri Lanka. In April 2004, the Government of Ranil Wickramasinghe was ousted from Parliament and a coalition including several Sinhala nationalist groups opposed to negotiations with LTTE came to power. No significant progress has been made to date.

LTTE negotiators proposed an Interim Self Governing Authority, but the Government's response did not satisfy LTTE, and the peace process paused in late 2003. 6 rounds of direct talks were held in several locations around the world, but no substantial steps were taken towards a political settlement to the conflict. In early 2002 both the LTTE and the Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding and entered into a joint ceasefire. At the end of 2001 a new Parliament was elected and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe declared a ceasefire, responding to the LTTE which had declared a ceasefire in December 2001.

During her re-election rally, a suicide bomber killed 10 people, missing Kumaratunge. In December 2000 President Kumaratunge was re-elected for her second term. This was the first time the country's cricket team had won the Cricket World Cup tournament. In 1996 Sri Lanka became world champions in Cricket.

Both the Sri Lanka Army and LTTE stood accused of gross human rights vioaltions including abduction, torture and extrajudicial executions during the conflict. By the mid 1990s, LTTE controlled much of the North and had set up a de facto state. Her initial attempts to negotiate with the LTTE failed and the war in the north and east continued with heavy casualties to sides. In 1994 Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, daughter of two previous Prime Ministers, was elected President.

In 1993 Sri Lankan President Ranasinghe Premadasa was killed in a similar manner during a May Day celebration in Colombo. In 1991 a LTTE suicide bomber killed former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in retaliation for the IPKF and the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord. Thousands of Muslims who had lived there for generations started a mass exodus to southern parts of the island. In 1990 the LTTE ordered all Muslims in the north to leave their homes.

Many also believe that the Indian army lost support because of acts of rape and extreme misconduct by Indian soldiers. It is speculated that for this brief moment the LTTE was aided in a fight against the IPKF which drove out India. It is alleged that the IPKF attempted to setup a longterm base of operations in Sri Lanka's north which frightened the Sri Lankan Government. They had lost over 1,500 men.

The 60,000-strong Indian force soon lost the support of both sides of the conflict and began a phased withdrawal, ending in 1990. India, which had helped create and nurture the Tamil militant groups in the north had changed its stance, and in 1987 signed the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord and sent the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to the Jaffna peninsula. While the Government dealt with the JVP rebellion, it enlisted the help of the Indian government to quell the Tamil separatist movement. 60,000 people vanished in the south during this period.

His death ended the rebellion. At the end of 1989, JVP leader Rohana Wijeweera was arrested and days later shot while allegedly trying to escape. Both JVP and the Government engaged in the abduction, torture and murder of thousands of people. By 1988 it was a full-scale guerilla war.

In 1986, the JVP (banned in 1983), started their second struggle in the south for state power. One Tamil militant group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), fought other groups, assassinated their leaders and assimilated their cadres into their ranks, and soon became the main group fighting the Army in the north and east. A 1985, round of peace talks in Thimphu, Bhutan failed, and the conflict intensified. Clashes between Tamil militants and the Government increased.

Many thousands were forced to move from their homes in Colombo to the north and east. In July 1983, called Black July, in response to the killing of 13 army soldiers in Jaffna, the Government instigated a week-long pogrom against the Tamil community in the south, killing thousands. The Government sent the military to the Jaffna peninsula, increasing tensions. They called this homeland Tamil Eelam.

By early 1980s, calls for a separate Tamil state had grown to the point where Tamil militants engaged in guerrilla attacks against the Government. Jayewardene came to power and released imprisoned JVP members. R. In 1977, J.

The insurrection was quelled by the government of Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike and JVP leaders were jailed for treason. In 1971, the Marxist group Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) launched an insurrection in the south to gain state power. Initially many of these were supported by the Indian Government which sought to appease Tamils in South India. Calls for a separate Tamil state in the north and east grew, and eventually several Tamil militant groups formed, particularly in the northern Jaffna peninsula.

Decades of tension between Tamils living primarily in the north and east, and the Sinhala majority in the south, led to widespread communal riots in the 1950s to 1970s targeting Tamil communities and economic interests in many parts of the island. This led to unrest among Tamils, whose cultural identity was threatened. The 1956 Sinhala Only Act made Sinhala the sole official language, forcing Tamil-speakers to learn it. Post-independence governments implemented a series of pro-Sinhala measures, supporting the Sinhala majority.

Independent Sri Lanka is famed for it's remarkable increase in human development, notably life expectency, infant mortality, and literacy, which lead the country to be seen as somewhat of a model for third world development. In 1982, the legislative and judicial capital was moved from Colombo to nearby Sri Jayewardanapura Kotte. In 1972, the country became a republic, free of the last vestiges of colonial domination; the name was changed to Sri Lanka. The flag of the last king of Kandy was proclaimed the National Flag with few minor changes (added orange and green vertical bars to represent the Tamils and Muslims).

The first prime minister was Don Stephen Senanayake, while Sir Henry Monck-Mason Moore became Governor-General, the Queen's nominal representative. As Ceylon [1], it became a dominion in the British Commonwealth in 1948. The British used Sri Lanka as a base for operations in the Pacific. A month later, a Sri Lankan garrison on the Cocos Islands mutinied, but the rebellion was put down.

Extensive damage was caused to shipping and the Royal Navy lost two cruisers, an aircraft carrier and an Australian destroyer. Japan bombed Sri Lanka, but there were few casualties. During World War II pro-independence leaders were jailed. The struggle for independence started in the 1930s, when the Youth Leagues opposed the 'Ministers' Memorandum' which asked the colonial authority to increase the powers of the board of ministers, rather than seeking independence.

After the fall of Kandy kingdom in 1815, the British unified it with the 'low country' Kingdoms on the island under one rule for administrative purposes in 1818. Great Britain replaced the Dutch in 1796, and the coastal areas became a crown colony in 1802. During Portuguese and Dutch rule of coastal areas, the interior, hilly region of the island remained independent, with its capital at Kandy city. The Dutch followed in the 17th century.

They defeated both coastal kingdoms (Yarlpanam and Kotte) in the 16th century. In 1517, the Portuguese established the fort and trading post Colombo. When the Portuguese arrived, the island consisted of several autonomous kingdoms under the nominal suzerainty of the king at Kotte, such as those of Yarlpanam (Anglicised Jaffna) in the north and Kandy in the central hills. It was also invaded and ruled by Kings of Kalinga (present-day Indian state Orissa) and Malay Straights.

South Indian kingdoms invaded Sri Lanka on a number of occasions and so the island was ruled for extended periods by Tamil dynasties such as the Cholas, Pandyas, Cheras and Pallavas. Parakramabahu IV, who ruled from Kotte, was the last Sri Lankan king to rule over the entire island, although the other kingdoms remained under the nominal suzerainty of the High King at Kotte. After the Polonnaruwa era, the capital moved often, and the island was rarely unified. 1070 to 1200).

1000 AD) and Polonnaruwa (c. 200 BC to c. Buddhism and a sophisticated system of irrigation became the pillars of Sinhalese civilization (200 BC-1200 AD) that flourished in the north-central Sri Lanka, with capitals at Anuradhapura (from c. Buddhism arrived from the Indian subcontinent in the 3rd century BC thanks to Arahath Mahinda Thero, missionary of Indian Emperor Ashoka, and spread rapidly.

Given the island's proximity to the Deccan Plateau, people of different ethnicities must have traveled to and from it throughout human history. Its origins are not dated, but must post-date the arrival of the Dravidian language group in South India sometime in prehistory. Tamil presence is noted throughout the country's written history. However, archaic Sinhalese langauge is closer to Prakrits used in northwest India, indicating an origin in the present western coastal Indian state Gujarat.

Legend states that king Vijaya came to Sri Lanka from Orissa in northeast India. Archaeological excavations at Anuradhapura show a settlement from the 10th century BC. It also describes a minister of Vijaya, Anuradha, who established the village Anuradhagamma which later became Anuradhapura and became the capital of Sri Lanka centuries later. This may refer to a specific group of Prakrit-speaking people, and not necessarily the first such group to arrive.

The Mahavansa describes the Sinhalese kingdom started by king Vijaya and his followers. The theory of Mahavamsa is a contraversial subject and a debate continues as to whether some aspects of it are factual. Archaeological evidence supplements the Mahavamsa as it places people (perhaps the indigenous Yakkas and Nagas of the chronicle) of indistinguishable racial origin living in the north-central Sri Lanka from the 10th century BC onwards with knowledge of agriculture, metallurgy, and livestock breeding. The Dipavamsa and Mahavamsa give a near-continuous written history of the island and is also the primary source for the early chronology of India, especially for the synchronity with Alexander the Great and the Greeks.

Prior to 1972, Sri Lanka was known by a variety of names; the best known is Ceylon. In 1978 it was changed to the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. In 1972, the official name of the nation that governs the island was changed to the Free, Sovereign and Independent Republic of Sri Lanka (ශ්‍රී ලංකා in Sinhala / இலங்கை in Tamil). .

The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (ශ්රී ලංකා in Sinhala / Sri Lanka in Tamil) (known as Ceylon before 1972) is a tropical island nation off the southeast coast of the Indian subcontinent, about 30 km south of India. The chronology of early India depends upon that of the Mahawamsa. The Buddhist scriptures were first committed to writing at Aluvihare in Sri Lanka. Winner of the Cricket World Cup in 1996.

First country to have a wildlife sanctuary [2]. World's leading exporter of cinnamon; exported to Egypt as early as 1400 BC. World's leading exporter of tea; Ceylon tea is of the finest quality in the world. Sri Lanka celebrated 80 years in Broadcasting on December 16th 2005.

First country in South Asia to start radio broadcasting with Radio Ceylon. Longest period of continuous multi party democracy by a non western country (from 1931-present). First country in the World to have a female prime minister (Sirimavo Bandaranaike). Western.

Uva. Southern. Sabaragamuwa. North Western.

North Eastern. North Central. Central. Ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka.