- Local report calls for opportunities for different ethno-religious communities to unite via macro level policies/programmes based measures
In Sri Lanka, creating more opportunities for people of different ethno-religious communities to come together through policy and programmatic measures at the macro level is among the ways to promote religious coexistence. At the same time, using religion for the purpose it is intended, i.e. to become tolerant, kind, and compassionate human beings, is the most powerful way to promote religious coexistence in the country.
This was noted in a recent survey report titled “Unpacking Coexistence: Inter-Group Perceptions of the Religious ‘Other’” which attempted to analyse people’s perceptions of “the other” and their willingness to coexist with communities outside their own religious identity. The report, which was based on quantitative data from a sample of 2,000 respondents and qualitative interviews exploring the educational and work-related life histories of 42 respondents, was issued by the International Centre for Ethnic Studies (ICES) and was authored by ICES Senior Researcher Ranmini Vithanagama. Quantitative samples for the survey had been drawn from a random sample of respondents from Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Jaffna, Trincomalee, Batticaloa, Mannar, Ampara, and Badulla Districts. The proportion of Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, Roman Catholic, and Christian religious groups had been drawn in line with the district wise ethno-religious composition. A purposive sample of 42 respondents had been selected from the Colombo, Kandy, Batticaloa, Galle, and Jaffna Districts for the qualitative portion of the report.
Perceptions about ‘the other’
The survey findings showed that most of the respondents from all religions strongly agree or agree that they are willing to start a business with a person of a faith different to their own, if they are trustworthy persons. However, this proportion is lowest among Buddhists (68%) compared to 80% or more among non-Buddhists. As many as 67% of Hindus, 57% of Muslims, and 51% of non-Roman Christians strongly agree that the religion of a potential business partner does not matter as long as they are trustworthy. The report explained that the proportion that disagrees or strongly disagrees with this idea is about 19% among Buddhists, and that about 10% of Muslims also tend to disagree.
The large majority of respondents from all religions strongly agree or agree that they are willing to defend someone of a religion other than their own, in the face of injustice, while the highest percentage was about 55% of Muslims and 51% of Hindus who strongly agree with this view.
What is more, the survey had paid attention to opinions about personal values. The large majority of respondents from all religions strongly agree or agree that they are comfortable getting along with people from other religions. The share that strongly agrees is as high as 53% among Muslims, while this share is the lowest among Buddhists as about 10% of Buddhists disagree or strongly disagree with this position.
Most respondents from all religions also agree or strongly agree that people should have a right to their own beliefs, although the share of Buddhists with this stance is somewhat lower compared to non-Buddhists.
Over 90% of respondents from all religions strongly agree or agree that they can respect good people, irrespective of what religion they belong to. Most respondents from all religions strongly agree or agree that there is a set of norms and values that should be followed by everybody, irrespective of what religion they belong to. Slightly less than 80% of Buddhists and well over 90% of non-Buddhists share this view.
Most Muslims, Roman Catholics, and Christians strongly agree or agree that they live strictly according to the values and guidelines of their religion. Close to 60% of Muslims strongly agree with this statement. In comparison, only about 60% of Buddhists tend to concur with this view, and about 23% of Buddhists are neutral to this view.
About 70% of Muslims strongly agree or agree that they believe that their religion and worldview are the only correct one, as 54% of Muslims strongly agree with this statement. In comparison, only about 26% of Hindus and 43% of Roman Catholics, and non-Roman Catholic Christians hold this stance. The report further explained that about 76% of Muslims strongly agree or agree that only their religion will lead people to the truth, in a context where 53% of them strongly agree with this perception. In comparison, only 24% of Hindus and 38% of Roman Catholics identify with this statement.
The survey report explained that most respondents strongly agree or agree with the idea of living in a society that shares the same worldviews and approaches to life as themselves.
In addition, the survey had obtained the respondents’ opinions about whether a person’s ethno-religious background is a factor that they take into account when engaging in various dealings with them. The examples that the respondents were provided with included purchasing cooked food from outside, purchasing groceries and daily household needs, purchasing clothes, renting a house for oneself and/or family, renting out a house, and purchasing a plot of land. A considerable percentage of respondents from all religions had stated that the ethno-religious background and identity of the parties with whom they deal with in the said scenarios are factors that they take into consideration.
State and perceptions of co-existence
Adding that the large majority of the respondents consider themselves to belong to a religion and consider themselves to be religious, although the degree of religiosity varies from person to person, it explained that being religious does not only involve performing rituals and following prescribed patterns of life, but also more profound ideas such as doing no harm to others, doing good deeds, and living peacefully with others. It added that religiosity does not preclude individuals from respecting other religions and acknowledging the good teachings of all religions.
Another salient observation emerging from both sets of data, the report said, is the people’s belief that religion is a personal choice, which should be kept separate from other dimensions of life such as education, employment, business, friendships, politics, and human interactions in general.
While some respondents are open to visiting and participating in rituals in places of worship of other religions, others are happy to visit them for knowledge and experience. Some respondents do not want to visit places of worship outside their own religion, out of deference to their own religion, because it is prohibited or because they do not think it is of interest to them.
The fact that it is hard to observe patterns emerging from specific ethno-religious groups corroborates the idea that these choices are personal and individualistic, and do not speak to how a community or a group perceives “the other”, as per the report’s conclusions.
The report, in its conclusions, further said: “There is some evidence both from the quantitative and qualitative evidence that non-Buddhists compared to Buddhists have had more experiences of discrimination and marginalisation based on their ethno-religious identity. It is also evident that many non-Buddhists perceive that Buddhism tends to be favoured over other religions for a number of reasons, including the fact that most Sri Lankans are Buddhists, and because it is protected by the Constitution. On the other hand, many non-Muslims perceive Muslims to be not very friendly, secretive, and keeping to their groups. Many non-Hindu respondents perceive Hindus to be superstitious, and many non-Roman Catholics and non-Christians consider Roman Catholics and non-Roman Catholic Christians to be groups who try to convert others to their faith. It is clear that these perceptions and misconceptions seem to have underpinned the racially and religiously charged discrimination and marginalisation that some respondents in both the qualitative and qualitative samples have experienced.”
As per the survey, all respondents have a reasonably good understanding of what coexistence is. Despite seeing differences and even weaknesses in “the other”, all respondents recognise the importance of coexistence for both strategic (such as economic development) and intrinsic reasons (living in harmony and being respectful of differences). In addition, many respondents also believe that the vast majority of the general public is willing to coexist.
The report added: “It is also clear from both the analyses that when religion is not given undue prominence where it is not relevant, there is strong potential for coexistence. The life histories analysis clearly shows that universities, where academics have nothing to do with one’s religion or ethnicity, have provided a catalytic environment for friendships and networks to grow among groups from different ethno-religious backgrounds, and at the very least to be cordial to each other even if they are not friends. Even in the work histories, it was clear that when the ethno-religious identities of the respondents, suppliers, buyers, or employees are not given prominence, there is room for friendship, mutual respect, and good social networks. The quantitative analysis shows that this indeed seems to be the case. By and large, respondents are rational economic agents in their day-to-day decision making, and to some extent, even in strategic decisions. It is only in relation to the purchase of land that we observe increased sensitivity to the ethno-religious identity of the community.”
As per the report, most respondents have profoundly useful suggestions to promote religious coexistence in the country. The survey had found that while there is common consensus among respondents from both quantitative and qualitative samples about the importance of keeping religion separate from politics, many of them also recognise that the way to do so is to create awareness about religious coexistence and strengthen the exposure of the general public to religions, rituals and festivals that are different to their own. While this can be done at any level, most respondents believe that the school is the best place to teach people about respect for others and living harmoniously in a multi-ethnic and multi-religious society. Respondents also believe that creating awareness about extremist groups is important so that people do not fall victim to false propaganda.