Confronting the Complexity of Loss

Gnanasara Thero [General Secretary of the BBS] had attended a propaganda
meeting at Aluthgama; the riots started immediately after that. They were wellplanned
riots. During the meeting, he provoked the crowd to attack Muslims. The
plan was executed perfectly. There were about 2,000 rioters, and among them,
there were people from other areas who mixed with the local rioters that came.
Mobs from other areas were transported in buses. It started at around 6 o’clock in
the evening. Some of them first broke into a motor shop and stole helmets, which
had been stored in that shop.
At around 7.30pm, a mob came to my house and set it on fire. My house was
completely burnt down. It wouldn’t have burnt like that with just petrol. I think
they might have used some kind of chemicals. I was not at home when this
happened, but within ten minutes, I came back. At that time, everything was
burning. I would have attacked them, but they had already left. We then began to
pour water to extinguish the fire. My house was built only six months previously.
They had broken the windows, and set fire to the bed and furniture.
They also set fire to my electrical repair shop. All the documents that I had there
were burnt; company receipts, withdrawal slips—all were burnt. I had eleven
refrigerators, seven or eight air conditioners and seven washing machines for
repairs; and my tool sets were destroyed. I couldn’t even save a single screw.
There was a garment factory close to my house that was badly damaged. The
owner of the factory, who was a Muslim, must have suffered a loss of 25-30
million rupees. Another Muslim neighbour had a hardware store. That was also
burnt down. Likewise they have burnt down many shops and houses.
Their aim was to destroy our economical wealth. They also attacked those who
went to stop them. One of my cousins was shot dead by them. All the houses and
shops at the border of Darga town were burnt down by 9 o’clock in the night.
3. Reflections on Truth, Memory and Justice
The recollections, observations and opinions of participants were examined through a
process of transcribing and translating the original interview records, and analysing
responses pertaining to six key areas of discussion. These interview responses were
thereafter compared with the responses of participants at the two focus group discussions.
Similar to the interviews, the focus group discussions were also divided into two
segments: the first focused on the recollections of participants, and the second focused on
their observations and opinions with respect to the six areas of discussion.
3.1 The context of loss
The participants were presented with a series of questions prompting further reflection on
their loss. It is understood that the idea of ‘loss’ is often subjective and deeply personal. It
could range from the abstract—for example, the loss of dignity—to the tangible—for
example, the loss of life or property. This study focuses mostly on the latter conception of
loss, wherein participants encountered the loss of a family member or property as a direct
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