2006 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
Culture in Practice A Study Integrated Culture and Economic Aide fur the Peace Process in Sri Lanka
| Project/Area Number |
16401029
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Section | 海外学術 |
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| Research Field |
Cultural anthropology/Folklore
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| Research Institution | Hitotsubashi University |
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Principal Investigator |
ASHIWA Yoshiko Hitotsubashi University, Graduate School of Social Sciences, Professor (30231111)
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| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
NAKAMURA Hisashi Ryukoku University, Faculty of Economics, Professor (50172424)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2004 – 2006
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| Keywords | Sri Lanka / peace process / conflict resolution / anthropology / violence / culture / peace and reconciliation / cultural policy |
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| Research Abstract |
This research project was conducted in Sri Lanka during a six-year period of turmoil that began with the signing of the Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) in 2002 and concluded with its breakdown. During this period the coastline of conflict zones was devastated by the tsunami generated by the Great Sumatra Earthquake. After the signing of the CFA, the international community provided much support with high expectations for achieving peace, and the Japanese government and NGOs actively participated in supporting rehabilitation and peace construction.
In this research Yoshiko Ashiwa (head investigator, anthropologist) and Hisashi Nakamura (investigator, development economics) contribute to the peace process from an academically neutral position to understand and analyze the situation by drawing on their research experiences and networks accumulated over decades of research in Sri Lanka. Ashiwa did participant observation on the frontline of politics by participating in two Japanese election monit
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oring missions, conducting a social survey of peace consciousness of inhabitants in the Sinhalese southern region and the suburbs of Colombo with the support of local universities, and intensively interviewing local leaders in conflict zones. Her findings confirm the importance of cultural support for the peace process. Nakamura conducted surveys of a fishing community affected by the war and tsunami and Sri Lankan immigrant workers in the Middle East, as well as advising rehabilitation projects in tsunami-devastated areas. Conducting multiple frontline studies and research enabled him to identify priorities in the provision of disaster relief to communities and integrated support for economic development. For the purpose of sharing the research results in an ongoing fashion with civil practitioners, scholars, and Japanese and Sri Lankan officials the project organized four public symposia in both countries with the support of Hitotsubashi University, Colombo University, the Japan Foundation, and the Japan Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The research exceeded the expected results, due largely to Ashiwa and Nakamura's deep field experiences in Sri Lanka and knowledge that enabled the project to surmount difficulties of high tension and unanticipated shifts in organizing, conducting, and completing the research. One of the project's major conclusions is that the breakdown of the peace process can be attributed largely to the singular focus of the international community on economic development and total lack of support for forming a solid foundation of peace consciousness of the people. Such a consciousness could have furthered the peace process by promoting shared values of peace among the split communities through support for open media and cultural projects to enable dialogue between ethnic groups.
This project is a rare and significant instance of participant observation research in post-conflict zones. Its data, activities, and findings are a significant record of conflict resolution and peace construction Less
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Research Products
(36 results)
