The Tsunami of 2004 in Sri Lanka: Impacts and Policy in the Shadow of Civil War

This book is based on empirical research in Sri Lanka conducted after the catastrophic tsunami which hit the country in December 2004. The aims of the research have been to develop new knowledge on post-crisis reconstruction and recovery work, on how to bridge the knowledge gap between researchers and practitioners, as well as trying to use past research experiences from Sri Lanka to learn about the present day situation. The chapters use a common analytical frame related to the ‘policy narratives’ of post-tsunami recovery in the shadow of war, and deal with housing reconstruction, livelihoods, internally displaced, humanitarian interventions and protracted conflicts.
The authors represent various social scientific fields and they have experience from different geographical areas of Sri Lanka.
This book was published as a special issue of Norsk Geografisk Tidsskrift.

Ragnhild Lund is a Professor in the Department of Geography at the Norwegian University of Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
Piers M. Blaikie is Emeritus Professor in the School of International Development at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom.

1. Introduction: The tsunami of 2004 in Sri Lanka. An introduction to impacts and policy in the shadow of civil war Piers M. Blaikie, University of East Anglia, UK
2. ‘Unpacking’ the narrative of a national housing policy in Sri Lanka Cathrin Brun & Ragnhild Lund, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim
3. Livelihoods in a conflict setting John Nigel, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim
4. ‘Your subject of protection is a dangerous one’: Protracted internal conflict and the challenges for humanitarian agencies Hazel Lang, Griffith University, Australia and Anita Knudsen, Austcare, Australia
5. Whose solution? Policy imperatives vis-à-vis internally displaced persons’ perceptions of solutions to their situation in the Sri Lankan conflict Suzanne Y.A. Tete, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim
6. ‘Tsunami third wave’ and the politics of disaster management in Sri Lanka Kalinga Tudor Silva, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka
7. Is ‘build back better’ a response to vulnerability? Analysis of the post-tsunami humanitarian interventions in Sri Lanka Sarah Khasalamwa, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim
8. Siting conflict and peace in post-tsunami Sri Lanka and Aceh, Indonesia Jennifer Hyndman, Simon Fraser University, Canada