Sri Lanka

Care for Orphans - Raka Institute

The Lion House, formerly known as the Raka Foundation for the Protection of the Unprotected, is a local organisation which helps children and young people in the southern province of Sri Lanka who have suffered any form of physical, emotional or sexual abuse. More recently, it has brought support to those affected by severe trauma or who were orphaned during the tsunami which hit the region on 26th December 2004.

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Sri Lanka

The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (formerly known as Ceylon) is about half the size of England and lies close to the southern tip of India and near the equator. The country was ruled by the Portuguese, the Dutch and then the British and gained independence from Britain in 1948.

Sri Lanka has been at the centre of Buddhist religion and culture from ancient times. Today, the country is a multi-religious and multi-ethnic nation, with nearly a third of the population following faiths other than Buddhism, notably Hinduism, Christianity and Islam.

The ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka, which has its roots in the deterioration of relations between the Tamil and Sinhalese communities from the 1950s, has killed an estimated 70,000 people and led to the displacement of more than a million people.  After 25 years of violence the conflict appears to be at an end when in May 2009, government forces eliminated the last areas controlled my the main rebel group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).  The conflict has had a severe impact on the country’s development and is a major cause of poverty for over 1 million Sri Lankan people.

Large parts of Sri Lanka’s coastline were devastated by the tsunami on 26th December 2004 which killed some 40,000 people and displaced more than 400,000 people.

Sri Lanka is well-known for its production of tea and coffee and boasts beautiful forests and beaches, making it a popular destination for tourists.

The most recent Human Development Report ranks Sri Lanka at 102, with a medium human development rating status. The Human Development Index (HDI) value is 0.759 compared to the HDI of the UK, which is 0.946.

Photo courtesy of Nick Ponty, Glasgow Evening Times