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Sri Lanka Sri Lanka Freedom Party Rule, 1956-65
Legislation and Communal Agitation
Some of the first actions taken by the new SLFP government
reflected a disturbing insensitivity to minority concerns.
Shortly after its victory, the new government presented
parliament with the Official Language Act, which declared Sinhala
the one official language. The act was passed and immediately
caused a reaction among Tamils, who perceived their language,
culture, and economic position to be under attack.
The passage of the Official Language Act precipitated a
current of antagonism between the Tamils and the Sinhalese. The
Sri Lankan Tamils, represented by the Federal Party, launched a
satyagraha (nonviolent protest) that resulted in a pact
between S.V.R.D. Bandaranaike and S.J.V. Chelvanayakam. The
agreement provided a wide measure of Tamil autonomy in Northern
and Eastern provinces. It also provided for the use of the Tamil
language in administrative matters. The BandaranaikeChelvanayakam Pact also promised that "early consideration" would
be extended to Indian "plantation" Tamils on the question of Sri
Lankan citizenship. But the pact was not carried out because of a
peaceful protest by Buddhist clergy, who, with support from the
UNP, denounced the pact as a "betrayal of Sinhalese-Buddhist
people."
In May 1958, a rumor that a Tamil had killed a Sinhalese
sparked off nationwide communal riots. Hundreds of people, mostly
Tamils, died. This disturbance was the first major episode of
communal violence on the island since independence. The riots
left a deep psychological scar between the two major ethnic
groups. The government declared a state of emergency and forcibly
relocated more than 25,000 Tamil refugees from Sinhalese areas to
Tamil areas in the north.
Data as of October 1988
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