Sri Lanka told to stop tourism land grabs

International calls grow for country to stop displacing communities to get tourists

The Sri Lankan government and large tourism developers must stop forcibly displacing communities, destroying livelihoods, threatening food security, and wreaking havoc on the environment in the name of tourism, say Sri Lankan and international campaigning groups.

The groups, including participants of a recent International Fact Finding Mission, are calling for an immediate halt to the Kalpitiya Integrated Tourism Resort Project on Sri Lanka’s western coast– the country’s largest tourism development to date.

Herman Kumara of Sri Lanka’s National Fishworkers’ Solidarity Movement (NAFSO) says: “Whole communities face an imminent threat of displacement. The entire process is lacking transparency, accountability and responsiveness by the Sri Lankan government.  We need a National Commission to review the plans, to listen to the concerns of the people of Kalpitiya and ensure their needs are met.”

One thousand poor fishing families, as well as farmers, small tourism businesses and traders, claim they have not been properly consulted about the tourism project.  Many lack title deeds to their land, leaving them vulnerable to land grabs.  Hundreds of meters of beach have been fenced off by developers including within the high tide zone, where it is illegal to build.  The military is reportedly operating a check point in one area to curtail fishermen’s access. Reports Tourism Concern

“Sri Lanka is a beautiful country with so much to offer visitors, but its tourism should not be built upon the misery and human rights abuses of forced displacement and loss of livelihoods of the poorest,” says Tricia Barnett of the UK campaigning group.

Despite the associated human rights violations, the project is being supported by the World Bank as part of a four year ‘Sustainable Tourism Development Project’ signed with Sri Lanka in November 2010. The Project documents state that just four of Kalpitiya’s 14 islands are used.  However, according to Kumara, and Tourism Concern, almost all the islands have been regularly used by fishing communities for generations.

Kalpitiya is being put out to tender by the Sri Lankan government in its bid to use tourism to boost the economy and create jobs – considered vital to building peace following the country’s recent protracted civil conflict.

While some small hotels hope to continue to attract budget tourists, residents doubt whether such tourism infrastructure will meet their most pressing needs:  education, drinking water and improved healthcare.

Seventeen hotels are planned for Kalpitiya. Both Sri Lankan and international developers have bid millions of dollars for a stake. Infrastructure will include a helipad, an airport, cable cars, theme parks, a racecourse, and golf course.

"The Kalpitiya development is typical of the Sri Lankan government’s approach to anyone who stands in its way: ordinary people and their livelihoods are swept aside by the military to make way for business  opportunities for the governments' cronies. There is no accountability or commitment to the people of Sri Lanka" said Fred Carver, Campaign Director for the Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice

Valere Tjolle: Valere is editor of the Sustainable Tourism Report Suite 2011 Special Offers HERE