Hammeliyawatte: Decades of Exploitation and Imminent Eviction

Photo courtesy of VOA Eighty year-old Gopal Sandanam, a Malaiyaha Tamil, was born in Hammeliyawatte in the Baddegama division in Galle district in 1945. He had started working on the estate when he was 14 years and had continued working until he was 77 years. His parents are among those who are buried in the cemetery on the estate to which he has no access now after it was sold. He has never been to school. His wife Thekkamalai Thangai had been living in Hammeliyawatte since 1949. She also worked on the estate. She recalls riots in 1980s where Tamils…

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