Hidden Voices: Gendered Experiences of Marginalisation and Recovery in Sri Lanka

“Hidden Voices” is a multi-partner project which investigates how conflict shapes experiences of trauma and marginalization. The project is led by Dr Rebekka Friedman of King’s College London.

Using Sri Lanka and Colombia as case studies the aim of Hidden Voices is to bring to the fore less visible everyday processes and experiences of violence and transition exploring innovative processes of healing. It pays attention to voices that are often not heard in transitional justice research, particularly women who participated in or were directly affected by combat, focusing on former cadres, war widows and internally displaced populations. The questions that lie at the heart of the project are:

• How does militarization and protracted conflict shape experiences of trauma and marginalization?

• How and why do women’s stories become silenced or elevated in militarized settings?

• To what extent are women’s stories incorporated into collective recovery processes?

The aim of this one day exploratory workshop is to bring together stakeholders from different sectors of society and from different disciplines, professions and countries in order to have an inclusive dialogue around gendered transition processes in Sri Lanka. This workshop will create a space to work through ideas, and to share understandings and perspectives in relation to gender, memory and everyday aspects of violence, reconciliation and healing. It will also lay the foundations and help shape the future direction of "Hidden Voices" and contribute to building networks in Sri Lanka and internationally.

Centrally, this workshop also looks to draw out the potential ways that the "Hidden Voices" project might support and feed into Sri Lankan community transition processes, particularly relating to gender concerns, through artistic, academic or other avenues.