List of articles

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Devolution in Sri Lanka : The North-East Provincial Council, 1988 - 1990
Dayan Jayathileke

Abstract

This article, by a political activist who was, for a short time, one of the five Ministers of the North-East Provincial Council at the time it was established, is partly a memoir and partly a political analysis of the realities of devolution of power on the Sri Lankan context. It deals with a vitally important phase in India’s attempt to mediate in Sri Lanka’s ethnic conflict. The contents of the article reveal the extent of India’s pressure and influence in the establishment of the Council, and in the running of its affairs. It also shows how the Chief Minister of the Council was intent on a provocative political agenda which attempted to go well beyond the powers granted to Provincial Councils through the 13th amendment to the 1978 constitution.

Language, Religion and Identity in Pakistan : Language-Teaching in Pakistan Madrassas Tariq Rahman

Abstract

This article examines the role played by madrassas or religious seminaries in Pakistan. Students of such seminaries, the taliban as they are called in Pashto, now rule most of Afghanistan, and for that reason alone the education provided in the madrassas is of great interest to scholars. Moreover, the taliban are often accused of provoking or exacerbating sectarian conflicts between Shias and Sunnis in the country. The author shows how an understanding of what goes on in the madrassas is important in any study of significant aspects of current politics in Pakistan, and of the world-view of the taliban.

Ethnicity and Politics in the US : The Predicament of the African-American Minority
Dipak K Gupta

Book Reviews

Jayantha Dhanapala
Peradeniya: Memories of a University, K M de Silva and Tissa Jayatilaka (eds), Kandy, International Centre for Ethnic Studies, 1997, 200pp, Sri Lankan Rs. 1,250.00

T M Joseph
Studies of Indian Jewish Identity, Nathan Katz (ed.), New Delhi, Manohar Publishers, 1995, 203pp, Indian Rs. 295.00