Introduction: The Third World countries were introduced the neo-colonial liberalization with rigorous economic conditions as an appropriate approach to acquire a high social development, once they were decolonized. However, reflexive behaviour of rural community is a major constituent of Modern Development (Sustainability) Policies in contrast to earlier neo-colonial policy discourse. People’s reflexive behavior indicates the acceptance or rejection of large development projects within communities. Sustainable development is not only a social challenge but also a policy matter in developing countries; hence many problematic situations are in place. This study mainly focuses on the disposition of inconsistent relations between reflexive comportment and administrative systems with special reference to UMDP.
Research Problem: What is the disposition of societal determinants of imbalance between rural communities and administrative systems, which affect the reflexive development as a basic element of sustainability is the research problem being addressed. Objective and Justification: The objective of the study is to identify the ways in which societal reflexive behavior is inspired and influenced due to implementation of the state-administered multipurpose development projects in Sri Lanka. Development democracy specifies the stability between acquired results (ends) and community’s real expectations (means); and civil resistance against development projects can be considered as a consequence of civil society empowerment and the growing awareness of development agendas by local communities. Even though beneficiaries and victims of development projects are considered by policy endeavors, still there are some communities who are not specified. As a result, administrative authorities neither contemplate societal responses of non-specified communities when compiling policy agendas nor resolve problems related to development projects. Since this would be a cause of social instability, it is mostly significant to resolve problems between communities and administrative authorities, in order to reinforce the social development in Sri Lanka. Therefore the study attempts to find out the reasons affecting those problems between communities and administrative authorities within rural societies affected by multi-purpose development projects. Literature Review: Many of the resistance movements related to sensitive phenomena such as environment and culture illustrate the matured consciousness of communities on their existence and threats to the existence procreated by development projects (Shiva, 1991). However, modern development policy approaches normally do not encourage administrators and engineers to be aware on non-economic aspects; hence it will generate an imbalance between community tolerance and administrative process. Therefore, within a situation where a particular community does not acquire any expected development-justice or benefit, there should be an opportunity to challenge the policy process and make a public discourse in order to ensure the economy of survival and environment (Habermas, 1975). However due to complex socio-economic causes, equal opportunity for arguments and discourses are not given in modern nation states. As a result of highly strengthen hegemonic intervention and power-knowledge continuums, majority of the people are not benefitted by development projects. By strengthening development democracy, civil resistance is increased once the civil society has been empowered with societal knowledge and awareness. As Scudder (1993) asserted, in India, resistance movements by local communities against Narmada River basin development project illustrates the critical imbalance among cultural values, societal integration and administrative policies. However, administrative interventions and resistance behavior in accordance with development democracy in Sri Lanka is still unclear. Therefore, this study mainly focuses on the sociological determinants affecting development democracy based on UMDP. Methodology: In accordance with the grounded theory approach and theoretical sampling, case study methodology was specifically selected to ensure compatibility with the theoretical issues being addressed. Accordingly using unstructured interview guideline, 41 respondents were interviewed and 4 case studies were conducted. Apart from interviews, 6 direct observations were employed to gather the required data. Collected data were analyzed using case grounding approach and thematic system analysis. Results and Discussion: Disposition or nature of the societal determinants of imbalance between community-reflexive behavior and development-administration systems which affect the reflexive development as a basic element of sustainability will be discussed here. Highly stigmatized and inefficient bureaucratic system is a critical cause of civil resistance against development projects administered by the state. There is a clear detachment between the state administrative system and project’s management system, hence local people are confused with the problem that is where to report if fails the project and is reflected through resistance against UMDP. Grass root community does not approach a relevant authority with a relevant responsibility to submit their queries. This will automatically generate an imbalance followed by Resistance movements. Civil resistance as a part of reflexive behavior is also a result of unacceptable decisions setup by administrative authorities, once the disaster has started due to the project. Administrators’ usual role was modified after the disaster due to UMDP, even though local level bureaucrats reluctant to accede with the modified role. This is also a cause of resistance movements which represent development democracy. As a direct consequence of imbalance between expectations of people and administrators, civil society gets empowered. Therefore, people strive to resolve their issues relevant to the project using nonviolent resistance movements against administrative authorities. Once unexpected catastrophes have taken place due to development projects, the existing social organization would be transformed into an unstable status. However it’s really impossible to expect an instant transformation of administrative systems in accordance with the social situation, hence this delay will cause the resistance behavior of communities. As a most important fact, various expectations of the state administration and civil society are concealed from each other to acquire ulterior motives, and every stake holder strives to make distributive agreements or dead-end negotiations. As none of the stake holders forward real expectations, justifiable decisions are difficult to be approached. On the other hand, ball passing or avoiding responsibility can be considered as major hidden social factors between public administration and community expectations. Conclusion: The objective of the resistance or reflexivity is not just to resolve issues, but to redirect the concentration of administration system to the local communities. It’s not appropriate to analyze that the civil resistance or reflexive behavior of rural communities as something to be suppressed by administrative authorities by neglecting the hidden and crucial factors, since it helps the administrators to redefine and to correct the development paradigm by strengthening development democracy. Habermas, J. (1975). Legitimation Crisis. Cambridge: Polity. Scudder, T. (1993). Development Induced Impoverishment and Resistance. Resisting impoverishment, 123-135. Shiva, V. (1991). Ecology and the Politics of Survival: Conflicts over natural Resources in India. New Delhi: Sage.
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Misery in spite of happiness: Critical problems of Welfarism and Social Policy Process in Sri Lanka
Welfarism is a major discourse in the third world societies and intended to increase and stabilize social development. However, when the poverty alleviation programs are concerned, they are of course full of vagaries. Following delineation will give a basic introduction regarding welfare, its relationship with social policy making at first. Then the basic literature will be discussed briefly and the research problem and methodology will be specified. Thereafter it will be demonstrated that the relevant findings and conclusion. Keywords: welfarism, decolonization, neo-liberalism, administration, complex-stratum Protecting people who are in need, from vagaries of economic and political circumstances and changing situations of life is one of the objectives of universal social policy process. Modern welfarism, as a consequence of social policy process has long been considered as a major task of administrative programs in the third world societies. Although welfare reduction is widely used by many of the governments in line with neo-liberalism the third world countries are inherently would not be able to subside welfare policies, since the political and social stability is relatively depended on it. Whatever the political dimension is, on any circumstances, it is highly required to perpetuate any kind of welfare approach in order to ensure social development in the third world. Much of the problems of welfare policies relevant to the decolonized third world countries might be analyzed, when the universal social development in Sri Lanka is concerned. Especially, poverty alleviation programs incurred by past Sri Lankan governments have been successfully addressed the matters of poverty in a widely dispersed approach, even though some problems were in place due to complex stratification system in Sri Lanka. However, social protection policies intended to alleviate wide variety of poverty in Sri Lanka, introduced with highly administered government interventions were questioned since interests of some excluded societal segments were not addressed satisfactorily. Unlike developed societies, the third world countries are not homogeneous hence interests of mainstream societal segments have been addressed by welfare agendas in Sri Lanka, though interests of minor stratum were considerably less concerned. The objective of the study is to understand some critical socio-economic and political problems, relevant to the decolonized third world societies when poverty alleviation social policy programs are in place with the intention of social development in Sri Lanka. In order to address the research problem specified, here phenomenology was employed in accordance with the grounded theory approach, and a case study was specifically selected to ensure compatibility with the theoretical issues being addressed. “Labukele Estate” in Nuwaraeliya District was selected as the research area. Accordingly, using unstructured interview guideline, 20 respondents were interviewed and 2 case studies were conducted. Apart from interviews 5 phase-directed observations also were employed to gather the required data. Collected data were analyzed using case grounding approach and thematic analysis. Poverty alleviation programs incurred as a social welfare policy program in Sri Lanka has been encountered several complications for years without any kind of appropriate and pragmatic solution. Resource leakages due to complicated bureaucracy and inappropriate targeting with controversial conditionality are uppermost of the critical problems. On the other hand, dependent mentality and familial dependency, government policy changes, widely targeted policy approach, lack of administrative interventions, estate sector cultural barriers, protracted poverty trap can be considered as major vagaries of social welfare policies in Sri Lanka. Providing an appropriate solution and make policies just and stable also can be an exaggerated task. It is not an easy task to implement social policies aiming to alleviate poverty in the third world societies since expected social development get subsided due to unexpected problems specific to decolonized third world societies. Therefore, systematically narrowed, mostly specified welfare policy program would be the best possible approach to address the above problems specified, in the decolonized societies with miscellaneous societal segments. |