On April 22, 2019, SASNET Director Andreas Johansson’s article “Sri Lanka’s violent past has created a polarised society ripe for radicalisation” was published in The Independent in light of the deadly attacks on three churches and four hotels in different parts of Sri Lanka that claimed more than 320 lives. Andreas reflects on his fieldwork to date in various parts of the island and looks at the complex scenario of past and ongoing tensions and violent conflicts between various ethnopolitical and religious interest groups, into which the latest bombings are now to be placed.
On the same day, the online magazine The Conversation published the article “Who are Sri Lanka’s Muslims?” by Andreas, which traces the establishment of Muslim communities in Sri Lanka and reviews past and current conflicts within Muslim groups and with other religious and ethnic communities.