Development by dispossession? Forced evictions and land seizures in Paanama, Sri Lanka

In 2010, 350 families of farmers and fisherfolk living in Paanama, a coastal village in the east of Sri Lanka, were forcibly and violently evicted from lands they had cultivated and lived on for over forty years. These lands were taken over by the military to establish camps, and they are now being used to promote tourism.

Oxfam calls on the Government of Sri Lanka to implement their decisions on immediate release of these lands back to the community which depends on them for livelihoods and food. 

 

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This briefing note is part of the initiative Land Rights Now: The Global Call to Action on Indigenous and Community Land Rights.