Eastern Province, Sri Lanka

Coordinates: 8°34′16″N 81°14′14″E / 8.57111°N 81.23722°E / 8.57111; 81.23722

Eastern Province கிழக்கு மாகாணம் නැගෙනහිර පළාත
Flag Coat of arms
Statistics
Capital	Trincomalee
Largest city	Trincomalee
Largest metro	Trincomalee
Official languages	Sinhala, Tamil
Government
Provincial Governor	Rear Admiral Mohan Wijewickrama
Chief Minister	Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan
Created Confederation Abolished	1833 14 Nov 1987 (=1st with 8 others)
Area  - Total  - Percentage	Ranked 2nd 9,996[1] km² 15.24 %
Population  - Total (2007)  - Percentage  - Change (10 years)  - Density	Ranked 1,460,939[2][3][4]  %  % 146.15/km²
Gross Regional Product  - Total ()  - Percentage  - GRP/capita	Ranked  million Rs  % Rs
Time zone	Sri Lanka Standard Time Zone
Flower
Tree
Bird
Website	www.ep.gov.lk

The Eastern Province (Tamil: கிழக்கு மாகாணம் Kilakku Maakaanam, Sinhala: නැගෙනහිර පළාත Negenahira Palata) is one of the 9 provinces of Sri Lanka. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but they didn't have any legal status until 1987 when the 13th Amendment to the 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils^[5][6]. Between 1988 and 2006 the province was temporarily merged with the Northern Province to form the North-East Province. The capital of the province is Trincomalee.

Geography

Eastern province has an area of 9,996 square kilometers (3,859.5 sq mi)^[1].

The province is surrounded by the the Northern Province to the north, the Bay of Bengal to the east, the Southern Province to the south, and the Uva, Central and North Central provinces to the west.

The province's coast is dominated by lagoons, the largest being Batticaloa Lagoon, Kokkilai lagoon, Upaar Lagoon and Ullackalie Lagoon.

Demographics

The Eastern province's population was 1,460,939 in 2007^[2][3][4]. The province is the most diverse in Sri Lanka, both ethnically and religiously.

The population of the province, like that of the Northern Province, has been heavily affected by the civil war. The war has killed between 80,000 and 100,000 people.^[7] Several hundred thousand Sri Lankan Tamils, possibly as much as 400,000^[8], have emigrated to the West since the start of the war. There are a further 300,000 internally displaced persons in Sri Lanka living in refugee camps in the East and North and depending on aid provided by NGOs^[9] There are approximately 100,000 Sri Lankan refugees is India^[10]. Many Sri Lankan Tamils have also moved to the relative safety of Colombo. The war has also caused some of the Sri Lankan Tamils, Sri Lankan Moors and Sinhalese who lived in the province to flee to other parts of Sri Lanka.

Population of Eastern Province by ethnic group 1881 to 2007

¹ Sri Lankan Tamils and Indian Tamils. ² Sri Lankan Moors and Sri Lankan Malays. ³ 2001 Census was only carried out partially in the Eastern province.

Population of Eastern Province by religion 1981 census

Administrative Units

The Eastern Province is divided into 3 administrative districts, 45 Divisional Secretary's (DS) Divisions and 1,085 Grama Niladhari (GN) Divisions (villages).

North-East Province

The Indo-Lanka Accord signed on 29 July 1987 required the Sri Lankan government to devolve powers to the provinces and, in the interim, to merge the Eastern and Northern provinces into one administrative unit. The accord required a referendum to be held by 31 December 1988 in the Eastern Province to decide whether the merger should be permanent. Crucially, the accord allowed the Sri Lankan president to postpone the referendum at his discretion^[13].

On 14 November 1987 the Sri Lankan Parliament passed the 13th Amendment to the 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka and the Provincial Councils Act No 42 of 1987, establishing provincial councils^[6][14]. On September 2 and 8 1988 President Jayewardene issued proclamations enabling the Eastern and Northern provinces to be one administrative unit administered by one elected Council^[15]. The North-East Province was born.

The proclamations were only meant to be a temporary measure until a referendum was held in the Eastern Province on a permanent merger between the two provinces. However, the referendum was never held and successive Sri Lankan presidents have issued proclamations annually extending the life of the "temporary" entity^[16].

The merger was bitterly opposed by Sri Lankan nationalists. The combined North-East Province occupied one third of Sri Lanka. The thought of the Tamil Tigers controlling this province, directly or indirectly, alarmed them greatly. On 14 July 2006, after a long campaign against the merger, the JVP filed three separate petitions with the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka requesting a separate Provincial Council for the East^[15]. On 16 October 2006 the Supreme Court ruled that the proclamations issued by President Jayewardene were null and void and had no legal effect^[15]. The North-East Province was formally demerged into the Eastern and Northern provinces on 1 January 2007.

Provincial Council

The 13th Amendment to the 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils. The first elections for provincial councils took place on 28 April 1988 in North Central, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, and Uva provinces^[17].

Elections in the newly merged North-East Province were scheduled for 19 November 1988. However, the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF), which at that time occupied the North-East Province, rigged the elections in the north so that the Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF) and Eelam National Democratic Liberation Front (ENDLF), two Indian backed paramilitary groups, won all of the 36 seats in the north uncontested^[18]. However, elections did take place for the 35 seats in the east. The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress won 17 seats, EPRLF 12 seats, ENDLF 5 seats and the United National Party 1 seat. On 10 December 1988 Annamalai Varatharajah Perumal of the EPRLF became the first Chief Minister of the North-East Provincial Council^[18].

On 1 March 1990, just as the IPKF were preparing to withdraw from Sri Lanka, Permual moved a motion in the North-East Provincial Council declaraing an independent Eelam^[19]. President Premadasa reacted to Permual's UDI by dissolving the provincial council and imposing direct rule on the province.

The north-east was ruled directly from Colombo until May 2008 when elections were held in the demerged Eastern Province (the Northern Province continues to be governed from Colombo).

Current Situation

The Eastern Province has received at least $500 million dollars from international donors since coming under the control of the Government of Sri Lanka in 2007, according to the International Crisis Group.^[20] Communities in the Eastern Province still suffer from insecurity in the form of illegal taxes, political killings, abductions, and instances of rape. Many community members blame government security forces but also government-backed paramilitary groups such as the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP).^[21]

Maps

• Searchable Map of Sri Lanka

References

v • d • e Provinces of Sri Lanka Current Central  · Eastern  · North Central  · North Western  · Northern  · Sabaragamuwa  · Southern  · Uva  · Western Former North Eastern Historical Malaya Rata  · Rajarata  · Ruhuna

v • d • e Districts of the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka Ampara · Batticaloa · Trincomalee