About Viluthu

Viluthu means, in Tamil, the hanging roots of a Banyan tree.  Just as the hanging roots of the tree   support and nourish the branches to spread wide, this organization supports and strengthens people’s network in the conflict affected North and East

Vision

Viluthu envisions a world of tolerance and social justice; A society enabled to practice participatory democracy where resources and opportunities are shared amongst all regions and communities in a just manner.

Mission

Promoting a culture of democracy by facilitating changes in legislations, policies and institutional culture through building capacities and instilling values that underpin a democratic and inclusive society.

History and Context

The lack of governance is at the core of the crisis facing Sri Lanka today. Very few proponents of international development would disagree that the need for building capacity for better governance is paramount in the current day context. With a view to building capacity towards better governance Viluthu was established in March 2003.

Sri Lanka is a country endowed with ample natural resources. Till recent times, it used to boast of a high human development index compared to other countries in Asia. Yet, now it is extending its begging bowl for relief, rehabilitation and development interventions.

The causes for this are many faceted. A highly centralized state which has spawned a civil war, a relatively taciturn local government, widespread corruption at the highest political levels, stark human rights abuses and a  dormant civil society count as some of the major reasons. No amount of development aid can put this country back on the road to recovery unless these fundamental governance issues are sorted out.

In a country where war has been raging for over two and a half decades leading to high levels of militarization civil society has not been able to speak out. In this context Viluthu finds it imperative to work with the civil society through the youth, through vulnerable women, through local government, the private sector and the media: Promoting good governance by building capacities, especially in the Tamil speaking areas of the North and East                                         

Objectives of Viluthu

  • Generation and strengthening of Civil Society Strengthening of  Local Government institutions which are empowered  legally and functionally to facilitate participatory development of the grass roots community  in social, economic and cultural spheres

  • Promotion of  Gender Equality

  • Transformation of the  education system so that it  spawns a new generation of citizens  who create a just and inclusive society

  • Strengthening  the media so that it upholds principles of human rights, justice and equality

  • Promotion of a Transparent and Accountable Private Sector

Relevance of Strategy

The strategies for implementation of Viluthu’s programme are relevant to the following:-

  • there is a lack of civil society activism in Sri Lanka and especially in the war torn districts of North and East  provinces

  • there is a divided and prejudiced media in Sri Lanka which exacerbates the conflict

  • there is a lack of  awareness and appreciation of  a conflict transformation and inclusive approach  to solving  political  issues, at the level of the public as well as decision makers 

  • there is a lack of awareness of the functions , role and the working culture of democratic institutions

  • Women and children have the least say in the processes concerning peace negotiations although most affected by the civil war.  

  • the corporate sector is steered more by tax breaks and government grants than by the free market

Action Strategies

  1. Mobilizing of informed communities/citizens as a countervailing power to the State and the Market.

  2. Promoting of participation of stakeholders in the planning and decision making within the government programs, through support for the creation of appropriate mechanisms, and the upholding of the right to information.

  3. Strengthening the political agency of communities / citizens by empowering local governments through widening their sphere of implementation and their fiscal authority.

  4. Transforming media institutions to reflect the values enumerated above; that they assume responsibility to provide critical information and be open to being a fair forum for the multiple and differing voices of citizens.  This is achieved through building their capacities, as well as setting new trends with alternative models.

  5. Strengthening capacities of teachers and educationists in delivering an education which produces generations of young adults who are able to transform institutions as those infused with new values and culture, making   participatory democratic system a reality.

Areas of Focus in Viluthu’s Work

At Viluthu, we are acutely aware of the linkages between the causes of the crisis, and  know that the possible solutions also are linked likewise. Therefore, all our projects are intertwined, supporting and shoring each other while aiming at peace and democracy.

Areas of focus

  • providing  training & field implementation  support,
  • facilitating networks  for  advocacy,
  • engaging in research and publications.
  • intervening with the media.

Training and support

The main strategy in Viluthu’s work is to provide the forum and the basic information materials to bring people together for discussions and dialogue. Viluthu believes that the continuous interaction of people at different levels, catalyses the movement for social change. Therefore we create the opportunity through regular sessions of study circles, film screenings, and public meetings to facilitate people from all walks of life to meet with each other over a common issue.

The formulation of a principle lobby issue is another of our strategy. We continuously throw into study circles simple, safe and easy to handle issues to enable the members to intervene in policy matters. Through this our constituencies get acclimatized to the idea of   advocacy for change, which is at present alien to Sri Lankan culture. Working amongst NGOs, we focus mainly on occupation based community groups, as they have a direct interest in their own well being unlike other intermediary organizations.

Networks for Advocacy

Viluthu utilizes existing networks and institutions for program implementation. This calls for a culture of accommodation and the necessity to take a back seat in terms of profile. This has brought ample dividends where with minimum financial resources; we are able to accomplish maximum tasks. It has enhanced the quality of our relationship with other organizations in especially the Tamil speaking areas. The organizations we collaborate and work closely with are the following:

Engaging in research and publications

Research and publications constitute an important area of focus in Viluthu’s objectives. The target groups here are the teachers and educationists who are given the motivation to initiate discussion and dialogue on current education policies and practices.  

For the use of researchers, university students, teachers and professionals  and to fill the need for Tamil research writings, Viluthu  will assist in translating  material in English and Sinhala languages to students of politics and sociology.

In order to bring about ethnic integration and peace building research and publications  will be produced both in Tamil and Sinhala  for mass scale distribution. It is hoped that these publications would impact positively the Tamil and Sinhala communities and build bridges with hardcore Sinhala constituencies such as in Galle, Matara and the Uva province.

Intervening with the media

Viluthu works with the media institutions in a way to re-focus on core values in journalism and for journalists to be responsive to fairness and justice in their interface with multiple and differing voices of the citizens. The main area of focus in this respect is achieved through building media capacities, as well as setting new trends with alternative models.

Capitalizing on the popularity of electronic media productions Viluthu  would endeavour to use the radio and television, effectively, to high light issues facing women and children in the country. Likewise television will be used to review the ideological content of history as represented by the historians in the past, for the benefit of teachers and educationists.

The structure of Viluthu

Viluthu offers membership to eminent and resourceful people who can participate and contribute to Viluthu’s work. Currently there are 27 members drawn from various fields of Academia, Media, Business (entrepreneurial) Development, Gender and Development, Trauma Counseling, Management Training, Health and Nutrition, Education, Local government, Local Participatory Planning, Infrastructure Development,  Town Planning, Urban Design and Community Development. 

The Board of Viluthu is elected by the members, voted annually and consists of nine members. The Directors for the year 2007/2008 are as follows:


Board of Directors

Ms. Shanthi A Sachithanandam,
(Social Activist, Writer and Gender Specialist)

Prof (Mr.). S Sandarasegaram
(Dean, Faculty of Education, University of Colombo)

Mr S. Paskaran
(Trainer in Theatre)

Mr K. Nadaraja
(former Assistant Commissioner Local Government, Batticaloa)

Mr. Nadarajasivam
(senior Broadcaster and Advisor to SUN FM)

Mr. Sivanesachelvan
(former editor Virakesari and Thianakural, Former Director College of Journalism)

Ms. Sujata Gamage
(Researcher)