Power in Paperwork: Sri Lanka's Resistance

In the 1700s, the Dutch tried to control every part of Sri Lankan family life with

paperwork, but the locals learned how to play the system. The Dutch created

detailed registers called "school thombos" that tracked every baptism, marriage,

and even when kids started school. It was a tool for moral control and to ensure loyalty

to the colonial state. But people started using these official records as proof

of identity. They’d take them to court to win inheritance disputes or secure their

social status. The very paperwork meant to control them became a source of power.