Inscriptions and Erasures; Grief, Hope, and Rights: A Struggle for Truth and Justice for Disappearances in Postwar Sri Lanka

我的论文考察了战后斯里兰卡失败的过渡司法项目以及与战争有关的暴行不受惩罚的问题。它通过探索少数民族泰米尔妇女代表在斯里兰卡政府和泰米尔伊拉姆猛虎解放组织(LTTE)之间内战(1983-2009年)失踪的亲属为真相和正义而进行的斗争。猛虎解放组织是来自少数民族泰米尔社区的一个激进组织。过渡时期司法指的是一系列司法和非司法措施，如起诉、真相委员会、赔偿、道歉、清洗等，以处理战后和后威权社会大规模侵犯人权的遗留问题。我的工作具有持续的意义，因为我在论文中记录和分析的妇女为真理和正义而进行的斗争仍在继续，并困扰着整个国家。斯里兰卡后殖民历史的特点是，国家和非国家行为者与三次不同的暴力起义有关的失踪事件反复发生：1971年的第一次南部起义；1988-1991年的第二次南部起义；以及斯里兰卡政府和猛虎组织之间的内战。根据联合国的数据，斯里兰卡是世界上有记录以来第二高的强迫失踪事件。这也是有罪不罚的悠久历史，法律记录中只有两起案件追究了肇事者的责任。斯里兰卡政府拒绝解决与战争有关的暴行对真相和正义的要求，使这些家庭无法得到解决，并破坏了战后斯里兰卡的和平与和解。除了关注斯里兰卡，按照跨学科的方法，我的论文建立在现有学术的基础上，以提供关于a)被边缘化群体所看到和经历的国家的新见解，b)关于政治阻力的女权主义学术，以及c)国际行为者在问责过程中的作用。这份奖学金申请将使我能够巩固我的个人形象，并在学术界追求职业生涯。要做到这一点，我将：1.致力于在国际同行评议的期刊上发表研究成果；2.向学术和非学术利益相关者传播我的研究成果，并为有关侵犯人权行为责任的国际学术和政策讨论做出贡献；3.发展我的教学理念和技能；4.制定一项拨款提案，以进一步开展研究，并提交给英国皇家科学院、勒沃胡姆和惠康信托基金。这一奖学金将使我能够作为一名研究人员具体成长，让我有时间发表我的研究成果，建立网络，并参与知识交流和影响活动。在攻读博士学位之前，我多年来与一些知名政府机构合作，如协调和平进程秘书处和协商工作队和解机制；当地非政府组织，如穆斯林妇女研究和行动论坛和国际民族研究中心；以及国际团结网络，妇女生活在穆斯林法律之下。我将以这一经验为基础，实施一项强有力的影响和知识交流议程。我的研究的受益者包括失踪者的女性亲属，斯里兰卡和国际人权活动人士和政策制定者，从事人权和过渡司法工作的联合国官员，以及学者。我选择爱丁堡大学作为主办大学，是因为它是一所全球公认的大学，在法律、政治、暴力以及人权和过渡时期司法方面的研究成果卓越。我将与爱丁堡的两个英才中心--和平与冲突解决证据平台和南亚研究中心--合作，分别在过渡时期司法和南亚方面专门开展工作，以落实这一奖学金的关键方面。

My thesis examines the failed transitional justice project and related impunity for war-related atrocities in postwar Sri Lanka. It does so by exploring the struggle for truth and justice waged by minority Tamil women on behalf of their relatives who disappeared during the civil war (1983 - 2009) between the Sri Lankan state and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam (LTTE), a militant group from the minority Tamil community. Transitional justice refers to a set of judicial and non-judicial measures, such as prosecutions, truth commissions, reparations, apologies, lustration, etc., implemented to deal with legacies of massive human rights abuses in postwar and post-authoritarian societies.My work has ongoing significance as the women's struggle for truth and justice that I documented and analysed in my thesis continues and haunts the body politic. Sri Lanka's postcolonial history has been characterized by recurring cycles of disappearances committed by the state and non-state actors linked to three separate violent uprisings: the first southern insurrection of 1971; the second southern insurrection of 1988-1991 and the civil war between the Sri Lankan state and the LTTE. According to the United Nations, Sri Lanka has the second-highest recorded incidences of forced disappearances in the world. This is also a long history of impunity, where the legal record contains only two cases in which perpetrators have been held to account. The refusal of the Sri Lanka state to address the demand for truth and justice in relation to war-related atrocities has denied closure for these families and undermined peace and reconciliation in postwar Sri Lanka. Beyond the Sri Lanka focus, and following an interdisciplinary approach, my thesis builds on existing scholarship to offer new insights into a) the state as seen and experienced by marginalised groups, b) the feminist scholarship on political resistance, and c) the role of international actors in processes of accountability. This fellowship application will enable me to consolidate my profile and pursue a career in academia. To do so, I will:1. Aim to publish research in international, peer-reviewed journals;2. Disseminate my work to academic and non-academic stakeholders and contribute to international scholarly and policy discussions about accountability for human rights violations;3. Develop my teaching philosophy and skills;4. Develop a grant proposal to pursue further research for submission to the British Academy and the Leverhulme and Wellcome Trusts. This fellowship will enable me to concretely grow as a researcher, give me time to publish my research, build networks, and engage in knowledge exchange and impact activities. Prior to my PhD, I acquired extensive experience over many years working with high-profile government bodies such as the Secretariat for Coordinating the Peace Process and the Consultation Task Force Reconciliation Mechanisms; local NGOs such as the Muslim Women's Research and Action Forum and the International Centre for Ethnic Studies; and the international solidarity network Women Living Under Muslim Laws (WLUML). I will build on that experience to implement a robust impact and knowledge exchange agenda. The beneficiaries of my research include the women next of kin of the disappeared, Sri Lankan and international human rights activists and policymakers, UN Officials working on human rights and transitional justice, and academics. I have chosen Edinburgh as the host university because it is a globally recognised institution for research excellence on law, politics, and violence, as well as human rights and transitional justice. I will collaborate with two Edinburgh centres of excellence-Peace & Conflict Resolution Evidence Platform and Centre for South Asian Studies-working specifically on transitional justice and South Asia respectively to implement the KEI aspect of this fellowship.