Madness
A bunch of us did the impossible. We managed to pull off a great project in the shortest timeframe ever and came up with a good result. The elected members and staff of the Urban Council Mannar were fantastic to work with and we couldn’t have done it without people like Sinclair, Kamal Raj and Majuran, and of course a host of other people from Mannar. The villain in all of this was my pushy friend, Visakha, who ordered me to ‘pull my finger out’ and get this community visioning project done before I left Sri Lanka. In an ambivalent sort of way, I was glad of her insistence. We did in a mere three weeks what would have taken at least 18 months to do back in Oz (Australia). So here is most of the Executive Summary of the report…
A Stark Choice
As the District of Mannar slowly emerges from war, its people are reticent to make the mental transition from war to peace and deprivation to prosperity. One gets a strong impression that they have already surrendered to a fatalistic view of the future, victims of other people’s plans and designs. Harbouring such feelings will only prevent them from benefitting from the significant opportunities coming their way, the result of government and private sector plans for the district. The people have a window of opportunity to ‘get with the agenda’ and prepare for these vast changes or else become socially and economically marginalised. This was the choice presented to people who attended the visioning sessions.
A community setting its own agenda
The Mannar Marumalarchi 2022 (Restoring Mannar) community visioning project was instigated by the Urban Council of Mannar to arrest a society’s despondency and to empower its constituents to be ‘the authors of their own destiny’. Elected in March 2011 after an absence of 30 years, the Council was keen to incorporate a people’s perspective into Council deliberations about its direction and priorities. In so doing, it gave the people of Mannar a stake in determining their own future and Council an understanding of the people’s wishes, particularly important at the commencement of the council’s first term in office.
Over the horizon
According to Government plans, Mannar is to be developed as the first point of entry into the country. Talaimannar is to be made an entry port connecting various parts of the country and the Indian subcontinent. To facilitate the free flow of international and domestic travel, the Asian super highway, an Indo-Sri Lanka bridge, bus and railway terminal and a domestic airport are also in the offing. These development initiatives will attract a surge in tourists, business people and pilgrims from other countries, creating a greater demand for better accommodation, business support services, culinary outlets, black star coffee shops and leisure activity within Mannar. The free trade agreement between India and Sri Lanka, a refurbished port, regional off shore gas and petroleum exploration, a proposed export processing zone and a 24 acre industrial estate have also been planned.
Mannarin Marumalarchi 2022 involved a survey of 210 people, four village-based workshops and a large community forum. These different activities ensured that a broad cross-section of people deliberated, debated and negotiated a common vision for their beloved Mannar Urban Centre. The summary of findings below provides clear guidance to the Urban Council of Mannar as it embarks on a people-centred approach to planning and program development.
What people said
Eight key themes were highlighted by those who participated in the survey, workshops and forum – further education, business development, the environment, town planning, community programs, women’s development, tourism and finance. Participants joined in enthusiastically especially in drawings depicting their ideal Mannar community in 2022. Raucous discussion, moments of humour and plenty of good will characterized the sessions as they dreamed Mannar 2022 into being.
a. Further education
Education was an issue highlighted frequently, particularly for young people up to the age of 30 years. Further education was seen as essential for laying a solid foundation for Mannar’s future. Respondents expressed concern at seeing their youngsters leaving Mannar for other parts due to a lack of local tertiary education facilities. Of utmost importance were the establishment of technical colleges, a branch of a university and language teaching in English and Sinhala.
b. Business development
Although there was a great emphasis on business development in relation to fisheries, other areas like tourism (covered separately), the need for ‘value add’ opportunities for the agricultural sector and a focus on IT development were also highlighted. For overall business development in Mannar, many suggestions were made including construction of a large and technically modern fish market, refurbishment of the port and fishing harbours at South Bar, Keeri and Thalvupadu, IT training and a reinvigorated cottage industries sector especially carpentry, tailoring, coconut products, toddy manufacture and a modernized palmyrah industry.
c. Environment
The people of Mannar admitted their complete dependency on the natural environment for their survival. There was a great desire to protect their environment for future generations and a resentment toward sand mining, dynamiting of coral reefs to ensure quick fish catches and the filling in of traditional ponds for house construction, with disastrous effect on the Town’s natural drainage systems. However the people’s greatest fear centred on rising sea levels, holding fears that the island of Mannar would be submerged altogether. Their plea was to build rock walls around vulnerable areas, find alternative sources of sand and soil to halt erosion and mining, overhaul building codes and zoning to mitigate against the effects of natural disasters, plant more trees to stop erosion and to beautify the place and help the natural drainage system by restoring the natural ponds.
d. Town planning (municipal services, public facilities, drainage, garbage, roads)
Although residents demonstrated commitment and loyalty to their beloved Mannar Town, they expressed great disappointment about the ‘look and feel’ of the place. They felt that the town was badly planned and ‘messed up’. Perennial problems of flooded streets due to poor drainage, ad hoc development, illegal encroachment on other people’s land, lack of drinking water, a failed sewerage system, an intermittent electricity supply, outdated public facilities and services, ‘moon scaped’ roads and few recreational facilities had all taken their toll on the place.
Their greatest desire was to ensure that proper town planning occurred through redesigning the town; beautifying it and ensuring adequate utilities (electricity, drinking water, effective drainage and sewerage); working with the Urban Development Authority to produce a people-centred town plan for Mannar; modernized facilities (general hospital, shopping complex, railway, library with IT facilities), tourist facilities; catering for children and young people (modern sports stadium with swimming pool and children’s parks), and introduction of efficient public transport facilities.
e. Community programs
There was a significant minority who wanted to see the Council introduce community service programs for the betterment of the not so well off, particularly for the elderly, war widows, orphans and the disabled. They also bemoaned the rapid disintegration of the moral fabric of their society since the end of the war, witnessing the rise of domestic violence, teenage pregnancy, child sexual abuse, the abuse of war widows and alcohol and drug dependency.
They suggested the following initiatives – programs to help the elderly live in dignity; drug and alcohol programs which include relocating the centrally sited Wine Store in Mannar; programs to stamp out teenage pregnancy, domestic violence and child abuse, and initiatives to address sliding moral and religious standards.
f. Women’s development
A separate women’s development committee was formed so that their issues and aspirations would not be lost or side-lined among the other priorities. Most discussed were self-employment services for women, particularly livelihoods for war widows, exploration of income generation initiatives in new untapped fields and community awareness programs focused on the abuse of women and children.
g. Tourism
Throughout the visioning process, residents began to see the benefits of tourism for the area and the need to take control of it themselves so as to minimize any adverse effects. They preferred small-scale, culturally sensitive, economically sustainable and eco-friendly approaches to tourism over the ‘high end’ imposed western resort-styled models. They also talked about a custodial approach to tourism in which they both preserved their heritage and shared their unique local knowledge with others. Of central importance, however, was the need for a military withdrawal especially from public places as this would not be conducive to attracting fun-loving tourists.
They contributed many ideas to encourage tourism in Mannar including construction of a modern transport hub for public and private busses and railway; negotiation of the withdrawal of the military from Thalladi camp so it can be converted into an airport; development of attractive tourist facilities including good quality restaurants, culturally sensitive beach resorts and hotels, upgrading and restoration of local tourist attractions and sites – Madhu Church, Thiruketheeshvaram Kovil, Mannar and Arippu Forts and the Baobab Tree. Also identified was a need for attractive publicity about what Mannar has to offer.
h. Finance
A finance committee would be vital in developing a strategy for the procurement of funds to bank-roll the people’s ten year ‘wish list’. The committee would be tasked to determine which suggested initiatives were already on the government’s drawing board so that partnership arrangements could be negotiated; identify available central and provincial government financial allocations; develop plans to attract outside investment and improve the current revenue raising strategies of Council.
If you were the Chairman of the Urban Council…
As a final exercise at the Community Forum, participants were asked to rank what priorities they would pursue if they were the Chairman of the Urban Council. Although ‘drainage’ was the winner, along with ‘roads’, both are part of routine considerations in town planning. Taking this into account, the exercise clearly demonstrated the great importance that Mannar’s residents placed on proper town planning, ranking this ahead of what might have been considered as far more pressing issues during this post-war period:
- Drainage – 79 votes
- Town planning – 62 votes
- Roads – 40 votes
- Garbage – 30 votes
- Environmental care – 22 votes
- Library – 22 votes
- Leisure park – 12 votes
- Social service / volunteering – 12 votes
- Community unity – 11 votes
- Tourism – 5 votes.
The People’s Plan
The inspired title, Mannarin Marumalarchi (Restoring Mannar), was conceived by a young person, Kamal Raj. The title received instant acceptance and now rolls off the tongues of many locals. Mannarin Marumalarchi has become the new vehicle of hope for this town’s dreams and aspirations for the future. In total, over 500 people contributed to negotiating a ten-year vision for the Mannar Town Division. Their overall messages were clear. They articulated a vision, a set of principles and a raft of actions to bring their dreams to fruition.
Vision Statement
Mannarin Marumalarchi – visioning our future restoring our heritage
Principles
- Well planned
- Sensory-attractive
- Heritage preserving
- Forward-thinking
- Environmentally sound
- Diversity affirming
- Leadership inspired
Action objectives
- To establish a sound educational footing for Mannar
- To undertake responsible business development
- To ensure environmentally sustainable development
- To pursue effective town planning solutions
- To develop community programs that advance the needs of the most vulnerable
- To affirm the rights, roles and contribution of women and children
- To undertake culturally sensitive and eco-friendly tourism development
- To ensure ethical and Mannar-advancing financial planning.
This section concludes with two participants’ reflections of the community visioning project. Each describes the journey of the residents of Mannar Town through the visioning exercises, from suspicion and resignation to one of hope for a bright future in which they play a central role.
Father Victor Sosai, Vicar General, Catholic Church, Mannar
“This is the first time I have been at a gathering in Mannar where there has been such a broad representation of people from different walks of life – rich and poor, Muslims and Catholics, educated and uneducated, women and men, the elite crowd from Sinnakadai and ordinary residents from rural areas.
The youth especially were very happy and wanting to get involved in the process of developing their city and getting more infrastructure and facilities for it. They also discussed the importance and availability of new technologies.
People got the message. This was a great opportunity for people to voice their desires and requirements, to present at a public forum what they want for their city and for future generations.”
Mr Sinclair Peter, Retired Agriculturalist
“At the very beginning of the workshops, people were not motivated; they thought that with the government’s interference nothing could be done according to their wishes. They were negative about every development plan that had been put forward. After the workshop everybody had hope for the future. They were no longer negative or passive. Their thinking pattern had changed. This was an eye opener for them, that they had been given an opportunity to think and plan their future.”
”They also believe that talk is not enough. They wanted to get involved in the development process themselves. They were ready to contribute in every possible way. They also wanted organizations like the Urban Council and even Diaspora Lanka to do the follow-up, push these matters forward and especially keep the public aware of the progress.”
That’s the guts of it! A reinvigorated Town and eight sub committees who will continue the work throughout 2012 as they count down to their Mannar in the year 2022. Plenty of work for all, including the diaspora.
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