Recasting the Net: An Analysis of the Narratives of Fisherwomen Regarding Dynamics of Gender Discrimination in Trincomalee

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Thesis

Recasting the Net: An Analysis of the Narratives of

Fisherwomen Regarding Dynamics of Gender

Discrimination in Trincomalee

Name Laurine de Wolf

Student number 12302228 Supervisor Esther Jansen

Maarten Bavinck

Date 28-05-2021

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Abstract

While both men and women are involved in fisheries in Sri Lanka, the sector is often perceived as a ‘male only’ domain. Women’s contribution to the sector often remains invisible and undervalued. The structural inequalities that marginalize women’s fisheries livelihoods has been explored by research on gender inequalities in small-scale fisheries. Yet, the focus on macro-structural forces may overlook the agency of these women to engage and negotiate with these power structures. To fill the existing gap, this research aims to explore the narratives of fisherwomen in Trincomalee regarding their livelihoods. By conducting a literature review regarding dynamics of gender discrimination in the fisheries sector in Trincomalee secondary data was collected. Furthermore, one semi-structured interview was conducted with a researcher who has researched fisheries livelihoods and women in Trincomalee District in the past. The arisen findings show that all three sub-dimensions of gender discrimination, namely, restriction on access, participation in decision making and identity-based discrimination are present in the fisheries sector in Trincomalee. Yet, while these structural inequalities are experienced by women engaged in the fisheries sector, they are also reproduced, resisted and adapted. Identity seems to play an important role in the mediation to engage with, and negotiate in, the fisheries sector. Social categories such as ethnicity, caste and class may disadvantage certain groups in accessing the fisheries sector, while at the same time they may also provide women access to certain fishing activities. As such, the narratives of fisherwomen are neither sole stories of agency nor victimhood.

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Acknowledgments

The work that you now see before you is not the product of only my own labour, but the culmination of the people’s effort who helped and assisted me during my three-month bachelor thesis process. I am deeply grateful for all the encouragement and support I got from the people around me during this period.

I would like to begin by thanking Lucy Hall, who inspired me with her boundless energy and knowledge during my minor Conflict Studies to implement gender into my studies. I have learned a great deal from her and she provided me with a theoretical foundation regarding gender, preparing me to engage in the field of gender for my bachelor thesis.

For her advice, feedback and trust I would like to thank my supervisor, Esther Jansen. Whenever I felt stuck or frustrated with my work, I could turn to her for advice and support. I felt continuously challenged to take my work to new levels under her guidance, improving the quality of this thesis during the three month process.

I would like to thank Maarten Bavinck for continuously sharing knowledge and insights about fisheries in Sri Lanka with me, both from himself and from others. This allowed me to carry out this research, for which I am deeply grateful.

Let me thank Nilantha di Silva, for enabling a cooperation with the university of Ruhuna in the Matara District in Sri Lanka and introducing me to Mohammed Nikzaad. I am grateful for the support and assistance of Mohammed Nikzaad, providing me with insights of daily life in Sri Lanka during our chats.

Lastly, I would like to thank all individuals who shared their knowledge and enthusiasm with me. Without their cooperation, this research would not have been possible.

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Glossary of Local Terms

Goigama Agricultural/cultivator occupation caste (Sinhalese/Tamil)

Karaiyar Fishing occupation caste (Sinhalese/Tamil)

Karawa Fishing occupation caste (Sinhalese/Tamil)

Matti Clams and mussels (Tamil)

Veder Indigenous people in Sri Lanka (Tamil)

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1. Introduction

Sri Lanka’s long history of fishing has contributed to the livelihood of coastal communities in the country to this day. Currently, the fishing sector provides direct and indirect employment to 585,000 people (Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, 2020). Moreover, it ensures an essential intake of nearly 50 percent of animal protein through fish consumption in the country (Ministry of Fisheries, n.d.). As such, fishing plays a crucial role in providing food security in coastal communities in Sri Lanka (Mukarrama et al., 2013; Ministry of Fisheries, n.d.). According to the FAO (1996) food security exists “when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life”.

Zooming in on the local level in Sri Lanka, the Eastern Trincomalee District is one of the largest fishing districts of Sri Lanka, both geographically and in terms of the number of fishermen and women. The district consists of 11 Fisheries Inspector Divisions. Regarding the people involved in the marine fishing industry, Trincomalee reported 29,700 active fishermen and women in 2019

(Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, 2020). While both men and women are involved in fisheries, the sector is often erroneously perceived as a ‘male only’ domain (Choo et al., 2008). Activities in which women are often overrepresented, such as gleaning clams and mussels (Matti in Tamil), fish processing and keeping accounts, are frequently dismissed as employment categories in the fishing industry. As such, women’s contribution often remains invisible, undervalued and unremunerated (Williams et al., 2005). Yet, essential food security and nutrition for fishing

households is provided by women’s fishing activities (Harper et al., 2013; Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017). In the last decade gender literature regarding fisheries has become relatively rich, illustrating women’s contribution to the fishing sector worldwide (Weeratunge et al., 2014). Particular attention seems to be given to the various structural inequalities at various levels in the gendered livelihoods of fisheries. For example, in Trincomalee, women continue to be excluded from fishing-related spaces due to cultural norms regarding gender and institutionalized practices, such as the exclusion from official statistics (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017). The Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DFAR), who is responsible for fisheries management at the district level and the collection of data,

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presents the fisheries-related data with a single category for ‘active fishermen and women’ (Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, 2020).

The majority of literature seems to focus on the gender dynamics that restrict the fisherwomen (Perera-Mubarak, 2013; Koralagama et al., 2017; Udayanga & Sandaruwan, 2020). As such, there seems to be a gap in the literature regarding narratives of women’s agency in small-scale fisheries in Sri Lanka. While the fisherwomen are affected by multiple inequalities in their daily lives and during fishing activities, they are not passive victims. Instead of seeing this group as being primarily defined by these powerful structures, I regard them as having some agency to negotiate for their livelihoods. I seek to go beyond the binaries of agency and victimhood to show a more detailed account of the complexities of women’s lives in the fisheries sector (Shefer, 2016). As Bakare-Yusuf (2003, p. 11) argues:

If we assume that women are automatically victims and men victimizers, we fall into the trap of confirming the very systems we set out to critique. We fail to acknowledge how social agents can challenge their ascribed positions and identities in complex ways, and indirectly, we help to reify or totalize oppressive institutions and relationships.

In order to contribute to the field of gender and fisheries, my research aims to answer the following question: How do fisherwomen in Trincomalee engage with dynamics of gender discrimination in their fisheries livelihoods?

By answering the question, this research aims to address simultaneously the power structures embedded in the social, cultural and political spheres which marginalize fisherwomen in the Trincomalee District and the ways in which these women position themselves in relation to

discriminatory sociocultural norms, behaviours and practices in the fisheries sector. Since sustainable and efficient decisions and policies regarding fishing in Sri Lanka seem to be lacking in general (Weeratunge et al., 2014; Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017), addressing these inequalities may contribute to more inclusive decision making and policies in Trincomalee in the future. Since a considerable portion of the local, daily diet in fishing households is provided by women’s fishing activities,

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inclusive fisheries policies seem crucial in order to ensure food security in the coastal districts in Sri Lanka (Harper et al., 2013).

This thesis is organized into seven chapters. Firstly, a case context of the fisheries sector in Trincomalee is given. Secondly, the theoretical framework introduces and discusses the relevance of gender discrimination, intersectionality and agency for the analysis. Thirdly, the methodology presents the research design, the selected methods, data analysis and the means of data handling. Next, the results are presented in chapter five. In the following chapter a conclusion is given, answering the research question. Finally, policy recommendations are given in the discussion.

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2. Case Context

In this chapter a background to the Trincomalee fisheries sector will be provided. Since fishing livelihoods in Trincomalee are characterized by intersecting lines of sociocultural, political and historical dimensions, this complexity needs to be addressed in order to locate the research within the context of post-war Sri Lanka. Firstly, a brief overview of the fisheries sector will be given. Secondly, the fishing crafts and gear present in the coastal district will be defined. Thirdly, the state and non-state actors in regard to decision making and fisheries institutions will be described. Next, an overview of social categories regarding fisherfolk in Trincomalee will be given. Finally, the consequences of the civil war to the fisheries sector will be briefly defined.

2.1 Fisheries sector

The fisheries sector in Sri Lanka consists of the marine sector and the inland and aquaculture sector. The marine sector in turn can be subdivided into coastal and offshore/deep sea fishing (Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, 2020).

Situated on the east coast of Sri Lanka, Trincomalee is one of the largest fishing districts in the country. The marine fishing sector is especially prominent, contributing to 85.6 percent of

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Note: Coastal Divisional Secretariats (sub-district) in Trincomalee. Adapted from Fishing, Mobility and Settlerhood, Coastal Socialities in post-war Sri Lanka (p. xxxiv), by R. Siriwardane- de Zoysa, 2018, Springer (https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-78837-1). 2.2 Fishing craft and gear

The fisheries sector in Sri Lanka is predominantly small-scale in nature. The majority of the 6143 operating boats in the Trincomalee fleet in 2019 consisted of small-scale/artisanal fishing crafts, which includes fiberglass reinforced plastic boats with an outboard engine and non-motorized traditional boats (Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, 2020). While the marine fisheries sector in Sri Lanka can be classified as mostly small-scale in nature, the ‘typical’ form of fishing cannot be defined that easily. An internal diversity of fishing practices exists, ranging from longlining, cast netting, hand-lining and beach-seining (Siriwardane-de Zoysa, 2018). As a general trend, women

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do not engage with these fishing practices. Instead, they are involved in activities such as gleaning, net hauling and fish drying (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017; Siriwardane-de Zoysa, 2018; N. Weeratunge, personal communication, April 20, 2021).

Beach seine fishing is usually organised along the lines of family lineages, with a padu site (a track of beach frontage) leased out under a family name. Exclusive access rights to the sea are granted with the padu license. Additionally, a crew may be hired seasonally to haul in the nets from the shore. A beach seine net is deployed by an artisanal craft from the shoreline and after a certain amount of time the nets are hauled in. On the leased-out beach belonging to the padu site residential huts and facilities for communal cooking, net mending and fish drying are often constructed (Siriwardane-de Zoysa, 2018).

2.3 Decision making and regulation

In order to analyse the restriction on participation in decision making faced by women in fisheries, decision making and regulation processes regarding fisheries first need to be identified. In the Sri Lanka context fisheries policies are designed by the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development. These policies in turn are implemented by the DFAR through a network of district-level officers under the auspices of an Assistant Director (AD). The district district-levels are further

subdivided into Fisheries Inspector Divisions, with a Fisheries Inspector (FI) in charge at the Fisheries Inspection Division level. The AD and the FI carry out statistical surveys, register craft, intervene in fisher and non-fisher conflict and enforce fisheries regulations. As such, they act as intermediaries between macro-level regulations, policies and fishermen and women. Besides the enforcement through district and division fisheries officers, fisheries regulations are enforced by the involvement of the Navy in Trincomalee (Lokuge, 2017).

In addition to fisheries-related institutions originating from state authority, dominant forms of social organization originating at the community level are also present in Trincomalee. As institutions, they play an important role in enabling mobilisation of resources and actors regarding fisheries (Siriwardane-de Zoysa, 2018). An example of these community-based organizations are fisher co-operative societies. They provide loans for livelihood purposes, assist at rescuing missions at sea and advocate on the behalf of the fisher with fisheries and other state authorities. For example, if a fisher

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was struggling with indebtedness, members from the fisheries society would help to pay off the loan and prevent a crisis (Weeratunge et al., 2021). However, concerning formal fisheries regulations and rule setting, they are relatively powerless. These tasks continue to be executed by state fisheries authorities and local navy units (Siriwardane-de Zoysa, 2018).

2.4 Fisherfolk

In order to analyse the structural inequalities that manifest at the intersection of gender, ethnicity, class and caste, an overview of these categories in the Sri Lankan context needs to be given. Looking at the demography, Trincomalee is one of the few districts in the country where the three major ethnic groups of Sri Lanka are relatively equally present. In 2012, Trincomalee’s population consisted of 26.7 percent Sinhalese, 30.7 percent Sri Lankan Tamil, 41.8 percent Sri Lankan Moor and 0.8 percent other ethnicities (Department of Census and Statistics, 2012). However, the current population composition is a relatively recent phenomenon (Lokuge, 2017). Changing demographic patterns are inherent to the long history of migration and movement in Trincomalee, both free, forced and state sponsored (Skinner, 2005).

Historically, fishing is understood as a caste-based livelihood in Sri Lanka. The majority of the fishers, almost 80 percent, belongs to the Karawa (Sinhalese) or Karaiyar (Tamil) caste (Munasinghe, 1985). Both castes occupy a contested mid-level rank in society (Lokuge, 2017).

2.5 The Civil War

As one of the most contested parts of the Eastern Province, Trincomalee was deeply affected by the 30-year armed conflict. The wartime had a crippling effect on coastal livelihoods, including fisheries, in the coastal North and Eastern districts in Sri Lanka (Siriwardane-de Zoysa, 2018). Fisheries activities were interrupted by military imposed bans, fishing craft and gear was destroyed by both parties, the Navy enforced the ‘pass system’ for those going to sea and ongoing threats of violence were present (Lokuge, 2017). Furthermore, the war contributed to the mass-scale displacement of the population in the district, such as Tamil communities in 1990 and Muslims in the last phase of the war in 2006 (Gaasbeek, 2013). Consequently, the demographic patterns and settlements in Trincomalee District were permanently altered.

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3. Theoretical Framework

In this section I will show the utility of an integration of the concepts of gender discrimination, intersectionality and agency as a comprehensive approach for this research. Firstly, the concept of gender discrimination will be defined. Secondly, in order to “expose and critique the forms of inequality and discrimination that operate in daily life” an intersectional approach will be outlined (Denzin, 2017, p.9). As will be discussed, intersectionality’s tendency to focus on the macro-level

(social structures/systems of power), structural forces may come at the expense of capturing agency of people. Therefore, I have integrated the concept of people’s agency into the conceptual framework.

3.1 Gender discrimination

Building upon the work of Koralagama et al., (2017), gender discrimination is categorised into three sub-dimensions: restriction on access; restriction on participation in decision making; and identity-based discrimination. Regarding restriction on access, this category refers to the gendered access to means of production in fisheries. For example, fisherwomen may be restricted by a multitude of notions, challenges and obstacles to secondary (through kinship or other close relationships) or tertiary (using capital) access to fish (Lentisco & Lee, 2015). Restriction on participation in decision making refers to the lack of control and representation by women in fisheries organization and decision-making processes. Finally, the last category refers to women’s identities consisting of heterogenous aspects, such as religion and class, which may reinforce dynamics of gender discrimination (Koralagama et al., 2017).

Although fisherwomen share similarities in their livelihoods as a result of their overlapping occupation, they cannot be perceived as a homogenous group. Namely, as a result of the multitude of social categories, such as ethnicity, class and caste, the lived experiences of fisherwomen differ from one another. In order to develop inclusive fishery policies, it is crucial that these differences are accounted for (Koralagama et al., 2017). Therefore, to account for these differences and their interconnected dynamics, an intersectional framework will be applied.

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Legal scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw (1989) first coined and introduced the concept of intersectionality in the late 1980s. Since then, the concept has been deployed in a multitude of disciplines, such as history, sociology, literature, philosophy, anthropology, as well as in feminist studies, ethnic studies, queer studies, and legal studies (Cho et al., 2013). Intersectionality can both be used as a theoretical framework as well as a broad range of methodological and theoretical tools. By applying

intersectionality, one can analyse the overlapping and conflicting dynamics of converging social categories which mediates one’s ability to engage with and navigate sociocultural dynamics of power (Nicolazzo, 2016). In using the concept of intersectionality as a theoretical framework, I seek to analyse the relationship among the multitude of identities of fisherwomen in the coastal district, as well as the systems of interlocking discrimination in which the women live and exist. For the scope of this research, I will limit the analysis to the identity categories of gender, ethnicity, class and caste.

While intersectionality is seen as a useful framework in research, it can be argued that it has some shortcomings. Firstly, a narrow focus on the structural analysis may come at the expense of the micro-level, the subjective experiences of the interaction between social categories and systems of power that affect individual lives to create unique configurations (Carastathis, 2014). Moreover, the essentialization of social differences of groups of people which may result in the concealing of intra-group diversity, is another critique of intersectionality (Lloro-Bidart & Finewood, 2018). In order to overcome these tensions, Cho et al., (2013) proposed to understand intersectionality as a nodal point, instead of a closed system. The dynamics and located dimensions of inequality and division in terms of relationships with one another become the focus of the analysis, rather than the space of an intersection (Anthias, 2013).

Given the mistrust and tensions created by the three-decade civil war in Sri Lanka, an intersectional approach seems to be especially relevant in the case of Sri Lanka and the Trincomalee District. Ignorance or a lack of understanding regarding these micro- and macro-level processes may result in fisheries regulation policies that deepen existing social cleavages (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017).

Furthermore, an intersectional framework is useful as it demands the acknowledgment of power relations which play an important role in the construction of thought, experience and

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knowledge. Therefore, researchers are called upon themselves to look inward, as well as look outward at the research that is conducted. Regarding the former, intersectionality as a framework calls on researchers to consider their own positionalities and how this frames their work. Regarding the latter, intersectionality may reframe the way in which researchers ask research questions and carry out research (Lloro-Bidart & Finewood, 2018). In the methodology section my own positionality and the need reflexivity will be elaborated.

3.3 Agency

Besides the concepts of gender discrimination and intersectionality, I will draw upon the

conceptualization of people’s agency. Although an intersectional framework allows for a nuanced analysis of the operating structural powers regarding gender discrimination in fisheries that marginalize certain groups compared to others, it puts less emphasis on the agentive power of the fisherwomen who engage with these dynamics. As has been mentioned in the introduction, I do not perceive fisherwomen as passive victims of the power dynamics in their livelihoods and the resulting marginalization and discrimination. They engage, negotiate and renegotiate these structural forces (Lokuge, 2017).

I will draw upon the theory of food sovereignty to embed and operationalize the agency of people (Ehlert & Voßemer, 2015). As an evolving theory and practice, global social movement organizations developed the concept of food sovereignty in response to multiple crises within the dominant food systems. The core principle of food sovereignty asserts that all people have the right to food – and democracy is crucial to achieve this realization. As such, food sovereignty focuses on who grows the food, where and how it is produced and at what scale, embedding it in issues of social justice and the rights of actors to make decisions and control their own futures (Levkoe et al., 2017). Building upon this perspective, agency of people in this regard can be indicated as the negotiation of issues of: engagement in fisheries, fishing locations, and means of production by the fisherwomen in Trincomalee.

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Figure 2. Integration of gender discrimination, intersectionality and agency into a conceptual framework

By aggregating the concepts of gender discrimination, intersectionality and people’s agency, I have developed a conceptual framework as illustrated in figure 2. Applying this framework to the narratives presented by fisherwomen in the coastal district allows for the analysis of gender discrimination. By defining the agency of fisherwomen as the engagement in fisheries, fishing locations and means of production, the ways in which the fisherwomen position themselves and are positioned within dynamics of gender discrimination can be analysed.

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4. Methodology

In this chapter I will describe my research strategy and the needed adjustments as a result of the current Covid-19 pandemic. Secondly, the data collection methods and analysis methods will be given. Thirdly, an overview of the ethical considerations in this research will be presented. Finally, I will describe my positionality and the implications to the ‘field’ I will study.

4.1 Research strategy and design

In order to understand the structural and cultural inequalities that affect fisherwomen’s livelihoods, as well as the agentive power of these women, qualitative research methods will be employed. As such, an ethnographic approach seems to be especially applicable. While many definitions of ethnography exist, they mostly draw attention to activities of observation regarding behaviour of members of a community and the immersion of the researcher in that community for an extended period of time. In my case, I would observe behaviour, ask questions and listen to conversations spoken by people engaged in fisheries activities (Bryman, 2016). Data would be collected through conducted interviews and observations at the wholesale markets and the work sites of fisherwomen in the Trincomalee District. By focussing on a single case, Trincomalee District, a detailed and intensive analysis

regarding the position of fisherwomen in the Trincomalee District will be presented (Bryman, 2016). However, as a result of the current Covid-19 pandemic in 2021, this particular research design had to be adjusted to reckon with these unusual circumstances. Instead of collecting the primary data myself, I conducted a literature review to gather secondary data for this thesis. Researching the dynamics of gender discrimination in Trincomalee seems to be particularly suitable through the conduction of a literature review. The literature consists of research already conducted in the area, such as the work of Lokuge and Hilhorst (2017) and Lokuge (2017). Furthermore, one semi-structed interview was conducted with a researcher who has researched fisheries livelihoods and women in Trincomalee District.

4.2 Data collection

By conducting semi-structured interviews both prepared themes and questions could be covered, while at the same time topics that seem to be important to the interviewees could be discussed

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(Bryman, 2016). In order to guarantee the flow of the interviews as much as possible beforehand, pilot interviews were conducted. This way, it became clear whether the questions were useful and

comprehensible to the interviewees or whether the interview guide needed to be revised (Bryman, 2016). The actual interview was conducted at the end of April 2021.

A combination of the following two techniques, snowball sampling and convenience sampling, were employed to locate interviewees. The former design process of selection is frequently used to get into contact with hard-to-find individuals within a specific community, in this case, individuals who have worked with fisherwomen in Trincomalee. The latter, on the other hand, capitalizes on

opportunities that arise to collect data from certain individuals (Bryman, 2016). Yet, while these sampling techniques were employed, only one interview was conducted in the end.

4.3 Data analysis

In order to interpret the data gathered during the interview process and identify key themes and information from the literature, coding was applied to the transcript and the literature. Thematic analysis allows for a hybrid approach of deductive coding while at the same time it allows for themes to emerge from the data using inductive coding (Fereday & Muir-Cochrane, 2006). Consistent expressions, phrases or ideas that turn out to be common during the interview determined the

inductive codes (Kvale, 2007). For the deductive part, based on the operationalization table (see table 1), the following codes have been established: access to fishing grounds; access to fishing markets; access to means of production; limited opportunities in administration; lack of representation in fisheries organizations; negligence in decision making; social differences produced by caste; social differences produced by ethnicity; social differences produced by gender; practices of engagement in fisheries; negotiating access to fishing locations; negotiation of fishing methods. During the coding process, the following inductive code was established (see table 1): social difference produced by class.

In order to transcribe and code the audio data, the program ATLAS.ti was utilized. ATLAS.ti is a tool for researchers that enables smooth data processing in a systematic way, thus providing a way to structurally analyse the meaning given in the texts (ATLAS.ti, n.d.). Using a colour coded system, the deductive and the emerging inductive codes were applied to the transcript.

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Concept

Dimension

Variable

Gender discrimination Restriction on access Access to fishing grounds Access to fishing markets Access to means of production Restriction on participation in decision making Limited opportunities in administration Lack of representation in fisheries organizations

Negligence in decision making Identity-based discrimination Social differences produced by

caste

Social differences produced by ethnicity

Social differences produced by gender

Social differences produced by class

Agency Perception of the ability to

influence one’s life course Practices of engagement in fisheries Negotiating access to fishing locations

Negotiation of fishing methods Table 1. Operationalization table

4.4 Ethical issues

Since this research engages with people, consideration needs to be given to the following ethical principles: informed consent, autonomy, and right to privacy (Patten & Newhart, 2018). In order to obtain informed consent, the participant was informed about the research before the interviews, to allow them to ask questions regarding the research objectives and the research process. Regarding autonomy, the interviewee was told that they could refuse to answer specific questions or withdraw from the interview at any given moment should they so desire. In turn, they were asked permission to record the interviews, quote their statements, and possibly publish the results. To ensure

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The interview was audio recorded and saved on a USB stick/SD card, on a PC and in OneDrive. By storing the files in three different locations, I hope to minimalize loss of data by guaranteeing backups. Furthermore, the files on OneDrive were password protected, with the password only known by me and my supervisor, in order to assure protection of the data and the participant.

4.5 Positionality and reflexivity

My own positionality and biography, both as a researcher and a person, played a central role throughout the whole research process (England, 1994). Regarding my own positionality and biography, I am a young white woman from the Netherlands, as well as a student engaging in higher education. As such, I am an outsider to the Trincomalee District, and Sri Lanka in general.

As has been mentioned in the introduction, my research aimed to acquire knowledge of the lives and experiences of fisherwomen in Trincomalee. The women’s lives and experiences were taken as the foundation for the creation of knowledge in my thesis. However, I realize I was not fully able to capture the authentic lived experiences of the participants. This is exacerbated by the fact that I was not able to immerse myself in the community for an extended period of time. Yet, I have attempted to provide a sincere analysis of their narratives. This attempt may draw attention to the invisibility of women in the fisheries sector in Trincomalee.

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5. Results

In this chapter I will present the findings of my research, divided into four paragraphs. Firstly, I will elaborate on the restrictions on access that fisherwomen in Trincomalee experience based on the empirical findings of Siriwardane-de Zoysa (2018), Koralagama (2020), and Lokuge and Hilhorst (2017). Secondly, the restriction on participation in decision making will be addressed. In this paragraph the findings are primarily based on the work of Lokuge and Hilhorst (2017) and Weeratunge et al. (2021). Thirdly, I will describe how social categories of identity mediate discrimination, basing my findings primarily on Lokuge and Hilhorst (2017). Finally, in the last paragraph I will present data based on personal communication and the work of Lokuge and Hilhorst (2017) regarding the narratives of engagement with dynamics of gender discrimination by

fisherwomen in Trincomalee district. 5.1 Restriction on access

As a general rule, small-scale fisheries in Sri Lanka exhibit a strong gender division in labour. Depending on the location and community, the gendered division of labour in fisheries varies. Generally, women are prevented from fishing with craft and gear in marine and lagoon fisheries due to gender norms (Koralagama, 2020). Siriwardane-de Zoysa (2018) observed how Tamil and

Sinhalese boatmen at times joked about how their wives and daughters barely knew the colour of their boats, let alone were able to identify them on the beach. Gendered taboos seem to reinforce the non-involvement of women regarding fisheries activities that require gear and craft. For example, women in Tamil settlements often stated that handling a net, especially a relatively new one, may result in bad luck. Given the fact that fishing is an activity which is partly dependent on chance, notions and social norms about luck play an important role in enabling access to fisheries activities (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017).

Yet, in reality, women engage in or actively shape local fisher livelihoods in a diversity of ways on the east coast of Sri Lanka. Siriwardane-de Zoysa (2018) identified eight categories of fishing associations in Trincomalee, including women’s participation in: direct fishing activities (e.g. gleaning and net hauling); post-harvest processing (e.g. drying fish); owning and supplying fishing

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capital within the household; as petty sellers of fish and wholesale traders; as owners of capital and as financiers; as managers of household finances; as co-operative society office bearers and members. Men, on the other hand, seem to be involved in all stages of fish harvesting, processing and marketing (Koralagama, 2020).

A combination of customary beliefs, norms and laws may reduce women’s access to fisheries resources and assets (Weeratunge et al., 2010). For example, women’s roles in the fisheries sector are shaped by gender-based cultural identities and beliefs (Demmke, 2006). A household survey of 800 households in total, conducted in four fishing villages supports, the significance of gender norms and practices in constraining women from fishing, indicating that 55 percent of the male participants believed that it is culturally inappropriate for women to fish. Furthermore, 49 percent of men stated that women do not have the proper skills needed to fish (Weeratunge et al., 2021).

In addition, social conflicts in the district may reduce women’s access to fishing grounds, markets and means of production. Examples of these conflicts concern the access rights to fishing grounds and landing sites and disputed fishing methods and practices. The impacts of social conflicts are highly gendered. In the case of fisherwomen, they become more vulnerable due to: an unsafe social-environment which impairs their mobility; poor hygienic conditions and sanitation facilities affecting their dignity and self-esteem; a poor catch resulting in fewer opportunities for dried fish processing reducing the family income (Koralagama, 2020).

Besides the livelihoods related to fishing, women, being perceived as wives and mothers, also have the responsibility of running the household, including reproductive tasks such as fetching water and taking care of children and the elderly. Within this framework of gender norms, these

reproductive tasks are considered to be their primary role and responsibility in their communities (Weeratunge et al., 2021). It seems that in the last years the role of housewife for women in Sri Lanka has become more prominent, which may result in the expression by fishermen that their wives are only tending the household, with no engagement in fisheries (N. Weeratunge, personal

communication, April 20, 2021). Yet, this notion seems inaccurate. While women may not engage in fishing related activities on the sea and on the beach, they are involved in gleaning in lagoons, and in post-harvesting activities such as processing and trading of fish. In the Trincomalee District, unlike on

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the west coast of Sri Lanka, such post-harvesting activities in which women engage are mostly small-scale and confined to their communities and homes. Medium- and large-small-scale processing and trading destined for other districts are done by men (N. Weeratunge, personal communication, April 20, 2021).

In addition, Lokuge and Hilhorst (2017) reported a lack of engagement of women at landing sites and markets in a traditional fishing community in Trincomalee. Yet, the study found an

exceptional case of a group of four Tamil women who sold fish at a retail market at the edge of a village in the district. This village also had a medium-scale wholesale fish market, but it was considered the norm that only men could trade in this wholesale market.

All in all, gendered cultural taboos, beliefs and norms seem to play a significant role in impeding women in accessing fishing grounds, means of production and fishing markets. It is

considered to be culturally inappropriate for women to fish, or women are believed to lack the proper skills to fish. Furthermore, wholesale fish markets in Trincomalee seem to be places where women are left out.

5.2 Restriction on participation in decision making

As has been mentioned in chapter 2, the DFAR is responsible for the collection of data regarding fisheries at the district level. Yet, disaggregated fisheries statistics regarding fishermen and women is lacking. The DFAR presents its data regarding the marine sector with a single category for “active fishermen and women” (Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, 2020). The nature of women’s engagement in fisheries activities often does not require registration of fishing equipment and craft. Furthermore, state management bodies do not consider pre- and post-harvest activities as part of the fisheries sector (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017).

In addition, the fact that fisherwomen engage in a multitude of livelihoods (gleaning and catching crabs, prawns and fish in the lagoons) as a strategy to endure seasonality shocks, further hinders categorising these women as fishers (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017). Consequently, including these women within an institutional definition as fish producers becomes challenging. As a result, women are being left out of the official statistics and typologies (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017).

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and Tamil women experienced a disadvantage in their negotiation with the military and police to access forest areas and lagoons. As a group, women can negotiate with the military and police through their male kin. Yet, since they miss social and political capital, power imbalances in these

negotiations are deepened (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017). The former refers to features of social organization such as trust, norms and networks which enhances coordinated action, while the latter refers to the individual powers to act politically (Goodhand et al., 2000; Sørensen & Torfing, 2003). A female Muslim gleaner expressed this feeling of anxiousness about engaging in her livelihood while the military was near by stating (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017, p. 491):

Since last Friday we haven’t gone to the forest for any purpose, because the Navy has come to the forest. We don’t know the reason why they are there. We are scared to go now. They are bad people, and women can’t trust them.

Besides the governmental institutions and the Navy, other fisheries-related institutions such as fisher co-operative societies can be found in Trincomalee. While a few women from coastal

communities in the district mentioned that they were members of fisher co-operative societies, they lacked identity cards, in contrast with the male members who were issued identity cards (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017). Furthermore, according to the research of Weeratunge et al. (2021), participation and membership of women in fisher co-operative societies of the two fishing villages in Trincomalee was almost non-existent. This notion is illustrated by the following statement: “Women are not allowed to talk at the Fisheries Society meetings. It is considered a crime if women talk. It is only for men” (Weeratunge et al., 2021, p. 46). In general, fisher co-operative societies seem to lack female membership and participation (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017; Weeratunge et al., 2021).

In short, given the lack of state or other institutional recognition regarding women’s involvement in the fisheries sector, fisherwomen are rendered even more vulnerable to losing their access to livelihood resources, as can be seen by the example of Muslim and Tamil women having to negotiate access to fishing grounds with the Navy. Furthermore, both Lokuge and Hilhorst (2017) and

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Weeratunge et al., (2021) observed that women lack representation at decision-making levels in Trincomalee.

5.3 Identity based discrimination

As has been mentioned in the access on restriction paragraph, Lokuge and Hilhorst (2017) identified fish marketing activities by four Tamil women at a small retail market. Three of the four women belonged to the fisher community, while the other woman belonged to the agricultural community. The fish supply of the four women that was sold at the outskirts of the village was based on community and kinship networks. Through male kin and friends secondary access to fish was

provided, enabling these women to sell fish at this market (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017). The retail seller from the agricultural community and (goigama) caste would generally attract the lowest number of suppliers. She stated that this was the result because of her caste identity, which mismatched with the suppliers’ caste affiliation. Her exclusion became more prominent during the lean fish season

(Waarakan) from November to February, when all the available fish would go to the other three female retail sellers at the market (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017).

Regarding the intersecting identity of ethnicity, fisherwomen’s gender identities may be articulated differently as a result of affiliation with a particular ethno-national identity (Hyndman & de Alwis, 2004). For example, coastal Sinhalese women seem to especially lack access to the fishing sector. Generally, the division of labour in Sinhalese households is one where the women take care of the household, while the men are fully responsible for all the work that is fishing related. The lack of access to fishing livelihoods may be attributed to the short history of the Sinhalese community in the district. The permanent settlement of Sinhalese people in coastal Trincomalee is relatively recent, tracing back only one generation. As a result of this relatively short history, historical cultural norms upon which Sinhalese women can draw seem to be missing in the area. Furthermore, the need to guard Sinhalese women’s virtue by men results in the need to control women’s engagement in fishing. Women who go to the beach are looked down upon by both Sinhalese women and men (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017). This ‘guardianship’ bears similarities to the notion of women as the bearers of cultural representatives and men as the protectors of the nation (Jayawardena & de Alwis, 1996). Consequently, in most Sinhalese fishing households, the division of labour is characterised by a clear

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separation between the public and private sphere. Usually, Sinhalese men are fully responsible for all the fishing-related work, while the women are in charge and take care of their household (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017).

Furthermore, there is an ethnic variation in women’s engagement regarding trading. For example, small-scale trading among Muslim women in Trincomalee is mostly done from the home, while Tamil women trade house-to-house within their communities or occasionally have buyers come from other districts to purchase dried fish. The fishermen may bring a part of their catch home and the women will sell it, fresh or processed, from their home and within their communities (N. Weeratunge, personal communication, April 20, 2021).

Thus, while gender seems to be the main decisive factor in women’s structural

marginalisation, at the intersection of other categories such as ethnicity, class and caste, access in regard to the fisheries sector is either gained or denied. Structural inequalities are manifested through the axis of ethnicity, caste and class. Intersecting identities affect women’s opportunities to obtain a steady supply of fish to sell at the retail market, while notions of protecting Sinhalese women’s virtue contributes to the division of private and public spheres regarding fisheries livelihoods (Lokuge, 2017).

5.4 Positioning

At the southern border of Trincomalee District, Lokuge and Hilhorst (2017) observed a group of indigenous (Veder in Tamil) women working with beach seine nets, side by side with the Veder men. Their involvement in the fishing process, from the point the net is set until the catch is landed ashore, is unique in the country. While women in parts of Trincomalee commonly assist in pulling in the beach seine, generally it is only the end of the beach seine net (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017).

The Veder women’s involvement in beach seining can partly be explained by them standing outside the caste hierarchies prevalent in the country. They refer to themselves first as Veder, then Tamil, denying Sinhalese and Tamil caste affiliations. Instead, they perceive themselves as being of a separate caste in the local caste systems. This notion of being of a separate caste group is shared by those outside of the community. By not identifying themselves with Tamil or Hindi castes, the Veder people seem to reject notions of bad luck and pollution associated with women (Lokuge & Hilhorst,

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2017). Responding to the belief that women touching the net brings bad luck, a female Veder beach seine worker answered: “There isn’t any problem like that here, because all of us are related” (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017, p. 487). As becomes prevalent from the quote above, kinship networks are an important strategy in accessing fishing livelihoods for Veder women. While the women are included in the beach seine activities, they have to take on expected gendered roles, especially regarding the household division of labour, to ensure this inclusion. Cooking and fetching water is always done by the women. Furthermore, the beach seine will not operate if there are no men present. Yet, when the beach seine was not operating, they drew upon alternative livelihoods such as agriculture work or forest-based work as a strategy to ensure income generation. By seeking alternative work, rather than working on the neighbouring beach seine, they did not jeopardise their community/kinship allegiances (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017).

Muslim coastal women from poorer households in Trincomalee, on the other hand, are associated with gleaning for clams and mussels. These women glean in the lagoons and collect the clams and mussels mostly by hand, without fishing gear (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017). Moreover, sometimes they also catch small fish and shrimp using their saris, small nets or their bare hands (N. Weeratunge, personal communication, April 20, 2021). The skills and knowledge needed for gleaning are passed down through the generations and they use their historical association with gleaning to continue to access physical and social space. While their need to meet daily subsistence needs is critical in their decisions regarding their livelihoods, one could argue that they are more or less in control of their decision to take on work. A female gleaner stated: “If we feel like it, we got work, otherwise don’t need to go” (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017, p. 483). Furthermore, the women argued that they choose the location and the pace that suits them. In addition, these women seem to have

capitalized the market demand for clams and mussels, especially in and around Trincomalee town. Thus, they make space for themselves in the fisheries sector, a sector which generally denies access to most women.

In addition, establishing a space for themselves in the public sphere seems to be resisting the notion regarding the gendered division of the public and private sphere. Yet, it needs to be stated that while there is an attempt to confine women to the private sphere and to define their roles as wives and

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mothers in Trincomalee, the practice is that they are involved in livelihood activities within their homes and outside of the home environment. The extent to which they engage within the public-private spectrum is shaped by intersecting factors such as ethnicity, caste and class. Nevertheless, when women in a Muslim village in Trincomalee were asked the question what their expectations were as a group in terms of improving their lives, these women expressed the wish to have a space for themselves on the beach in the evening, where they could talk with each other, spend time with the children and enjoy the sea breeze. They stated that the men were always on the beach, whereas they were always at home (N. Weeratunge, personal communication, April 20, 2021). This notion seems to align with the work of Lokuge (2017), who observed during her research that for female gleaners the work in the lagoons and shallow sea areas went beyond an income generation activity. The women felt independent and free, to a certain degree, in these areas, being physically away from their home environment and spending time with their peers.

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6. Conclusion

To conclude by answering the main research question, ‘How do fisherwomen in Trincomalee engage with dynamics of gender discrimination in their fisheries livelihoods?’ Based on the analysis in the above it can be stated that as a general trend, dynamics of restriction on access, participation in decision making and identity-based discrimination are present in the fisheries sector in Trincomalee District. Gender inequalities in the sector are produced by embedded social, cultural and political structures and processes. Gendered cultural taboos, norms and institutionalized practices in the district hinder women from accessing fishing grounds, means of production and fishing markets (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017; Weeratunge et al., 2021). Furthermore, cultural norms regarding gender define

expectations concerning woman’s role in taking care of the household, which seems to be prevalent in confining women to the public sphere of the house (Weeratunge et al., 2020).

Regarding the access to participation in decision making, institutionalized practices such as official statistics render the engagement of women in the fisheries sector in Trincomalee mostly invisible. As a result, women are rendered more vulnerable in losing their access to livelihood resources. Moreover, at decision making levels in Trincomalee, female participation seems to be mostly lacking. While women were observed to be members of local institutions such as co-operative fisheries societies, in certain cases women were not allowed to talk during the meetings or they were not issued identity cards (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017; Weeratunge et al., 2021).

Yet, while these restrictions seem to be the general notion in the fisheries sector in Trincomalee, women in the district are involved in fishing activities in a multitude of ways

(Siriwardane-de Zoysa, 2018). Furthermore, ethnicity, caste and class factors seem to shape the extent to which they can engage in the fisheries sector (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017; N. Weeratunge, personal communication, April 20, 2021). In chapter five I have described a number of examples of women participating in fisheries livelihoods, such as gleaning and post-harvest activities.

Networks based on kinships seem to be a prevalent strategy in accessing fisheries livelihoods. A diverse range of fishing activities are accessed through these networks, including beach seine activities by Veder women, trading by Tamil women at a retail market through male kin who supply

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them with fish, trading from the home through fish supplied by their husbands, and negotiating with the Navy to access lagoons and shallow sea areas through their male kin by Muslim and Tamil women in order to glean (Lokuge & Hilhorst; N. Weeratunge, personal communication, April 20, 2021). Lower income Muslim women in the coastal district, on the other hand, seem to rely on their

historical associations with gleaning using the traditional skills and knowledge passed down through the generations. This seems to be in stark contrast with Sinhalese women, who are lacking a

traditional livelihood history in the coastal district as a result of the very recent permanent settlement of Sinhalese people (Lokuge & Hilhorst, 2017).

As such it seems that structural inequalities in the fisheries sector are not only experienced by women, but also resisted, reproduced and adapted. While certain groups of women are at times disadvantaged by these inequalities in the fisheries sector at the intersection of ethnicity, caste and class, these same categories also enable them to carve out a space for themselves and exercise their agency in certain contexts. In expressing the desire to establish a physical space for themselves on the beach in the evening, a group of Muslim women seems to have a wish to exercise their agency in the public sphere, without seeking to directly transcend gendered labour boundaries in the fisheries sector.

As such, fisherwomen cannot be regarded as being solely victims, nor do they hold complete agency. Victimhood and agency should not be regarded as dichotomies. Instead, they are part of a spectrum and the lived experiences and narratives of the fisherwomen in Trincomalee regarding their livelihoods exist somewhere on this spectrum.

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7. Discussion

In this chapter I will discuss limitations to my research in order to bring nuance to the findings I have presented in my thesis. Furthermore, the present situation regarding gender in fishing policies in Sri Lanka is briefly sketched, after which policy recommendations are suggested.

This thesis adds a new dimension to the issue of gender discrimination in the fisheries sector in Trincomalee by analysing how fisherwomen engage with these dynamics. Nevertheless, some limitations should be noted, such as the lack of primary data. As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, accessing respondents proved to be challenging. At the end of April, additional Covid-19 measures in Trincomalee were implemented, with the public being requested to avoid visits to the Trincomalee District except in a matter of urgency, further limiting the access to respondents (Colombo Page, 2021). Furthermore, in the beginning of May lockdown measures were implemented in the whole country (The Times of India, 2021) As a result of these restrictions I was not able to contact fisherwomen in Trincomalee in the allocated time of two months. Instead, I opted for a literature review and interviews with researchers who have worked with fisherwomen in the district in the past, resulting in most of my findings being based on a secondary analysis of qualitative data. Future research may counteract these limitations by allocating a larger time frame in which a wide range of women engaged in fisheries activities can be interviewed.

With these limitations in mind, the contribution of my research to gender and fisheries literature can now be addressed. The literature review shows that in Trincomalee a gender-segregated division of labour in small-scale fisheries is present, in which men are involved in fishing activities on the sea and on the beach while women engage in pre-harvest and post-harvest activities. While this division seems to be a general rule in the fisheries sector in Trincomalee, it is by no means absolute. The involvement of Veder women in beach seining alongside men illustrates the transcendence of gendered labour boundaries. These results regarding division of labour in fisheries seem to fit the existing body of literature. (Branch & Kleiber, 2017; Kleiber et al., 2015; Koralagama et al., 2017). Based on the findings it seems that the fishing patterns and practices in which women engage are

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shaped to a certain extent by the complex dynamics of social categories such as ethnicity, caste and class.

Furthermore, while gender seems to be an overarching factor that shapes the realities and positions of women regarding their livelihoods, specific disadvantages are experienced by certain groups of women as a result of the intersection of ethnicity, caste and class. Through improving our understanding of these vary and interacting dimensions of identity in fisheries livelihoods, greater attention and sensitivity can be given by fisheries policies to the different fishing activities and roles by women in the fisheries sector.

With the new National Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy of Sri Lanka 2018 first steps are being made in addressing gender inequalities in the fisheries sector. Presented under the heading other areas, gender objectives of this policy include: promotion of equal opportunities for women’s

participation in the activities of the sector; making gender mainstreaming an integral part of small-scale fisheries development strategies; creating conditions for both men and women to have equal access to resources and benefits; and the encouraging of men and women to participate jointly in finding solutions to their problems (Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development, 2018).

Yet, while this policy seems to be the first policy that addresses gender inequalities in the fisheries sector in Sri Lanka, the International Centre for Ethnic Studies (2020) argues that the institutional mechanisms are not adequately articulated and, as a result, transformative capabilities who can respond to these issues of gender discrimination are lacking. Without concrete objectives the dynamics of gender discrimination in the sector are not adequately addressed. Moreover, without nuanced knowledge of the way in which women and men ‘do gender’ regarding their livelihoods, specific objectives and measurements on how to achieve these objectives in a practical way are likely to be lacking in policy designs. For example, as has been illustrated in chapter five, gender norms in Trincomalee emphasize women’s roles in reproductive work. Yet, the fact that women are heavily engaged in tending to the household is often overlooked during the conceptualization and planning phase to enhance women’s participation in community fisheries (Resurreccion, 2012). As such, gender mainstreaming approaches should be taken further in order to make the policies more practical and meaningful.

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In order to mitigate the dynamics subverting women in accessing engagement in fisheries, fishing locations and means of production, I suggest that an acknowledgment of women’s diverse fishing roles and practices in fishing management bodies is needed. In addition, registering women and disaggregating data regarding the Sri Lankan fisheries statistics can be a first concrete objective in establishing recognition of women in the fisheries sector to state fisheries management institutions and government authorities. The relatively small number of women engaged in fishing in the sea and on the beach is a possible explanation for the current lack of disaggregated data on the marine sector. Yet, as becomes clear from chapter 5, it can be argued that women’s direct and indirect work in fishing is far from obscured (Siriwardane-de Zoysa, 2018). Women are involved in the fisheries sector in diverse ways, ranging from gleaning to trading fish. Fisheries activities such as gleaning in the lagoons should be recognised by state officials. Recognizing their involvement in the fisheries sector and disaggregating data can be the first steps towards more inclusive decision making and the facilitation of gender equality in the fisheries sector in Sri Lanka.

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Recasting the Net: An Analysis of the Narratives of Fisherwomen Regarding Dynamics of Gender Discrimination in Trincomalee

Thesis