A Culture of Dependency

SELVARAJA RAJASEGAR- 06/03/2018

Editor’s Note: This post contains discussion on the topic of suicide. If you feel you may want to take your own life, or are concerned about someone else who is likely to attempt suicide, talk to Sumithrayo (when dialling from within Sri Lanka, phone: 011 269 6666)

The following article is a translation of a story by our sister site Maatram examining the exploitative practises of microfinance companies based in the North and East, which are causing fresh trauma for families already impacted by war.

Those who have traveled along the A9 highway would not have missed the large signboards on either side of the road.

The institutions who are putting up these signboards claim that their focus is to assist the people who suffered for the past 30 years, to regain their livelihood and improve their economic status. The people living in this area obtained loans for several reasons, including to resume farming activities, redeem assets that they had mortgaged, self-employment, house renovation, and so on. They continue to obtain loans.

Nine years after the end of the war, these micro financing institutions have revealed the real motive behind establishing their presence in the North and East. They have managed to create a new culture among the people – the culture of dependency.

View the full immersive story, compiled on Adobe Spark, here, or scroll below.

EB