On our recent study trip to Sri Lanka, I was curious about the role of women in rural and forest communities. Most of the people we talked to in Sri Lanka happened to be women. Women were represented in and at the forefront of several of the organizations with whom we met: the World Bank, the national Human Rights Commission, and an environmental law firm. However, when we traveled in the countryside, through winding partially paved forest roads, I observed an absence of women participating in livelihood activities. But I felt there was much more than meets the eye in rural rainforest-covered Sri Lanka.
We saw a glimpse of rural women’s work when we interviewed people on a government-owned tea plantation in the lush forest-covered mountains in the Knuckles region. Located just outside of the National Forest Reserve was a small village with combined living quarters that looked like slums. When I think of slums, I see them nestled in an urban jungle, but this slum sat atop a plot of cleared trees juxtaposed against the green forestland, with an impressive view of the valley below. From the paved road where we left our bus, there was a small beaten path that led us downhill into the tea plantation village area. As we approached the homes, many people, mostly women, gathered around to see what the foreigners were doing in their village. The women were wearing brightly colored shirts and dresses, and the men were wearing just as bright shirts and veshtis. We happened to arrive just as children were coming home from school; their bright white button-down uniforms a stark contrast to the colorful landscape.
The people we interacted with had families who lived on the plantation for generations, or were newer arrivals starting families of their own. In the interviews, one woman spoke of moving from India to be with her husband who had received a job offer on the plantation and now remains there with her family, while her husband is working a new job in a nearby city. Another woman told us that her family has been on that exact plantation for generations after her great-great-great-grandfather had come to work on the tea plantation. We did not have a chance to ask them about their day-to-day tasks, but the women did tell us that sometimes they collect firewood from the surrounding forest area. From our brief interactions, we saw a glimpse of the livelihood activities, and lifestyles, of women on tea plantations in Sri Lanka, which include picking tealeaves, collecting firewood, washing clothes, cooking, and taking care of children and the elderly.
During our last day in town, we sat in the lobby of a grand, gold-plated hotel, with the head of UN FAO Sri Lanka, Nalin Munasinghe. Mr. Munasinghe also acts as the gender focal point for the international organization in Sri Lanka. I asked him about his general opinion on the status of women in Sri Lanka. His response was optimistic. He proudly explained that everyone in the country values women and went so far as to say that the genders are in fact not equal because women are valued more than men. This is allegedly due to their roles in the home, which are jobs that men simply cannot do as well as women can. At the village level, there are high rates of gender-based violence despite the fact that men “really respect women” he said. Women’s contributions to the value chains in Sri Lankan villages is high, he noted, and includes managing the farm, harvesting, weaving. “Women do it all,” he remarked, and he also noted that occasionally the husbands and wives perform these activities together, but often women are the breadwinners because men spend the family money on alcohol and other illicit activities, a trend in developing economy contexts. However, unlike before this regime women can now reach and create leadership positions, and for him that is the meaning of gender equality.
After meeting Mr. Munasinghe and hearing his take on gender equality in Sri Lanka, I reflected on the women we met at the tea plantation earlier that week. I wondered, are they treated well and respected for the work that they do? Do their families and community respect them? What kind of leadership opportunities do they have on the plantation? I hope that the equality between women, men, and all people along the gender spectrum in Sri Lanka continues to improve.
