Rotti & Plain Tea: The Song Of Privileged & Symbol Of The Malaiyaha Tamils’ Struggle
Call For Action | Madushen Paramanathan
Pol rotti with lunu miris and plain tea; anyone who knows about this combination would already be craving this delicacy. Soft and warm rotti with pieces of coconut embedded, a spicy and juicy lunu miris spread in, will pinch your taste buds. Along with that fiery little zing, you will feel the hot plain tea calming your soul, taking away all your worries in the world for the moment. For anyone who has had this combo, maybe during school days, road trips or even on a rainy cold morning, it's not mere food, but a lasting memory.
But, not all those who experience cold mornings with rotti and plain tea, are privileged to enjoy it. For some of our fellow countrymen, it's a struggle. A struggle that finds them every cold morning, clueless whether it will feed their kids for the day, whether it will help them stand the long day of labour that's ahead or will heal the wounds they carry in and out. A food that is a delicate of memories for us the privileged, is a symbol of hunger, discrimination, exploitation and decades of inhumane and degrading livelihood of the plantation community; The Malaiyaha Tamils.
Rotti covers at least one meal for most of the plantation workers’ families. Every morning before sunrise, they grapple with wet firewood to prepare rotti, which is the main or often the only meal for the day, looking forward to plucking a formidable target of 18 - 22 Kgs of tea leaves to save the day for their family. From their tin-roofed colonial-era line houses the plantation workers set off to labour in one of the extreme working conditions in the industry. While they lose their blood to cuts, wounds and blood sucking leeches, the estates are often subjected to fatal wasp[1] and leopard[2] attacks. For all their blood, sweat and their vital contributions to the economy of Sri Lanka, what’s their income? An arguable daily wage[3] of Rs. 900. (~ 2.5 USD)
Sri Lankans don’t require an explanation for a time that’s hit by economic uncertainty and difficult living standards. In the plight of the current crisis, the daily wage of estate workers is not even close to a bare minimum for survival. But the struggle of Malaiyaha Tamils has been rendered on multiple fronts for over 2 centuries. They had to constantly fight for their identity as Sri Lankan until 2003, and for land, housing and basic facilities despite their contributions for decades to post-colonial Sri Lanka.
The Malaiyaha Tamil community is represented by 0.9 million people[4], where at least 15% of them are engaged in direct labour in estates, predominantly women. Research shows that the average per capita income among plantation households stood at LKR 8,566 compared to a national average of LKR 16,377 in 2019[5]. Rotti being the meal of choice for most families, Low Birth Weight is more prevalent in the estate sector than anywhere else in the country. Children born on estates are also three times as likely to be stunted, and two times more likely to be underweight compared to the urban sector[6]. Over 50% of elderly people were also found to be malnourished. Among minimal facilities for schooling, poverty and malnutrition are an extra burden for families, resulting in 12% of the plantation sector children aged five years and above having never been to school in 2015, while nearly 97% of the population in the urban or rural sector had some form of formal education[5].
The past experiences of the Malaiyaha Tamils have taught them to expect less or nothing from their political leadership. Their demands for improved living standards and a fair wage, have always been the tool for politicians to play their game and work for personal agendas using them as ‘pawns’[7]. Nonetheless, the plantation sector fought for their rights through their efforts. In 2018, hundreds of plantation workers and supporters gathered at Galle Face Green demanding a revision in their wages[8]. They wore black, protested all day and refused to involve any political leader or party, making it a people’s protest. Their protest which is very similar to the ongoing “People’s Protests”, Failed, since the families lost their only way of income due to weeks of protests and without the support of anyone apart from the vulnerable plantation workers.
Regardless of recent law reforms and international assistance in the past few years, Malaiyaha Tamils remain one of the most discriminated against and economically, socially and politically marginalised communities in the country[5]. Their dissent and resistance against degrading living standards and fundamental rights succumb to poverty and vulnerability. I believe that this is where the youth of Sri Lanka should collectively act to be a part of the struggle of our fellow countrymen.
The ongoing ‘Aragalaya’ has been a moving congregation of change, demands and ideas that is achieving what was thought impossible. But I believe that, for the 'Aragalaya' to be the representation of all Sri Lankans, we must acknowledge the mistreatment faced by the minorities and the marginalised communities and include their cry alongside our slogans. The principles that lead the movement should recognise the past that the minorities and marginalised communities share on ethnic dimensions alongside economic stability and call for change in the political class. The story of the Malaiyaha Tamils is one of many stories of Sri Lankan post-colonial history, that were silenced and oppressed over time. But now we have a collective responsibility to call for action on their behalf, as the youth looking for a prosperous Sri Lanka.
Behind every kilogram of tea you buy, there is a bloody hand of a woman (rarely of a man) that plucked five thousand tea leaves. Those hands are tired of holding slogans for generations demanding basic needs, and education, with hopes to replace their piece of rotti with a warm nutritious meal. If we educate ourselves and include the struggle of Malaiyaha Tamils in our ‘Aragalaya’, maybe one day, the rotti and the plain tea shall be a memorable delicacy for them, as same as you and I enjoy.
Personal Recommendations on platforms and people I follow covering the struggles and issues of Malaiyaha Tamils;
Amalini de Sayrah; Instagram @amaliniii
Rajesh Segar; Instagram @rajeshshot
Sources
Bracing the estate workers to meet stings of fury. (2020, August 18). Daily Mirror. https://www.dailymirror.lk/print/news-features/Bracing-the-estate-workers-to-meet-stings-of-fury/131-194011
Two estate workers sustain serious injuries in a leopard attack. (2019). Hiru News. https://www.hirunews.lk/english/215230/two-estate-workers-sustain-serious-injuries-in-a-leopard-attack
News Admin, Desk, T. W., & News Admin. (2021, October 23). Rs.1,000 minimum daily wage for estate workers: Companies serve cold cuppa to workers? The Morning - Sri Lanka News. https://www.themorning.lk/rs-1000-minimum-daily-wage-for-estate-workers-companies-serve-cold-cuppa-to-workers/#:%7E:text=Earlier%20this%20year%2C%20the%20Ministry,effect%20on%205%20March%202021.
Statistical Pocket Book 2021. (n.d.). http://www.statistics.gov.lk/Publication/PocketBook
Verité Research Hill Country Tamils of Sri Lanka Towards Meaningful Citizenship. (n.d.). https://www.veriteresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Verit%C3%A9-Research-Hill-Country-Tamils-of-Sri-Lanka-Towards-Meaningful-Citizenship-1.pdf
Roti and rice examining imbalances in nutrition for children in the estate sector. (n.d.). https://groundviews.org/2017/08/28/roti-and-rice-examining-imbalances-in-nutrition-for-children-in-the-estate-sector/
Srinivasan, M. (2021, December 4). A bitter brew: For Sri Lanka’s tea estate workers, fair wage is still elusive. The Hindu. https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/in-sri-lanka-a-bitter-brew/article61977837.ece
1500 estate workers protest in Colombo demanding wage revision. (2018). Ada Derana. http://www.adaderana.lk/news/50928/1500-estate-workers-protest-in-colombo-demanding-wage-revision?fbclid=IwAR3EGSNQSP5IEFJ-DUllJRsxqm3Y3MHK754OK6dCEJkn9pTrHv-g5j5HJk4