Breaking the Ashes: The Culture of Illicit Liquor in Sri Lanka

Appendix 2. Village and National Statistics on Alcohol Use

Appendix 2 Village and National Statistics on Alcohol Use Statistical information about alcohol use provides an important context for the study of drinking in Naeaegama. Officially, Sri Lanka has a low rate of per capita alcohol consumption estimated at only 0.18 liters of pure alcohol per adult per year in 2000 (World Health Organization [WHO] 2004a, 11). This figure places Sri Lanka as number 195 of the 213 countries surveyed—within the lowest 10 percent in terms of “recorded” alcohol consumption. Even including the WHO estimate of a further 0.5 liters of pure alcohol per adult per year in “unrecorded” or illicit consumption, Sri Lankan consumption still falls well below the means of Europe (about 10 liters ) and the United States (about 6 liters) (2004a, 10, 16). WHO’s estimate of illicit liquor consumption may, however, fall short of the actual level. The official figures contrast starkly with village perceptions of local drinking. Naeaegama residents estimated that 80 percent of men drank, nearly 20 percent of them on a daily basis. In search of collaborating quantitative data, in 2006 Siri and I counted drinking men in the immediate village area. The results are displayed in Appendix Table 2.1. Using the official election list, we rated the 567 Naeaegama area residents over the age of eighteen into four categories according to Siri’s knowledge of their drinking habits. We borrowed the categories (listed in the table) from “spot surveys” conducted biannually by the Alcohol and Drug Information Centre (ADIC). If Siri did not know how much someone drank, we listed him as not drinking at all. Siri automatically assumed that none of the women drank, even though several women we interviewed said that they sometimes sipped beer at weddings. This list may also underestimate Village and National Statistics on Alcohol Use 241 the number of men who drink occasionally at weddings and other ceremonies , because Siri listed several men as teetotalers whom I personally witnessed indulging moderately at village events. Overall, however, I trust Siri’s ability to peer into the fishbowl of village life and present an accurate profile of the drinking community. It is illuminating to compare the Naeaegama data with results from ADIC’s July 2005 spot survey of 1,541 men over the age of fifteen in six Sri Lankan districts (ADIC 2005). The ADIC data suggests that in the Galle District (which encompasses the village of Naeaegama), 60.1 percent of the men surveyed used alcohol at least occasionally (compared to 61 percent nationally). The gender disaggregated data from Naeaegama suggest that a smaller proportion of men, 45.5 percent, drink at least occasionally. As illustrated in Appendix Table 2.2, the ADIC spot survey suggests that among drinkers nationally, 60.6 percent drink on special occasions, 28.0 percent drink a few times a month, and 11.4 percent drink daily (2005, 7). In the Naeaegama data, out of the 126 drinkers, 34.9 percent drink occasionally , 27.8 percent drink at least once a month, and 37.3 percent drink more than four times a week. Comparing the two surveys, Naeaegama has proportionally fewer drinkers overall. Among the drinkers, the Naeaegama survey reveals fewer occasional drinkers and more daily drinkers than the national average. Interestingly, the ADIC survey found a higher proportion of daily drinkers (21.6 percent) in the Galle district than in the nation on average (11.4 percent) (2005, 7). Such patterns warrant further quantitative investigation. Several factors may explain the differences between the numbers in the Naeaegama and ADIC surveys. First, the Naeaegama sample is substantially smaller than the ADIC sample.Second,the ADIC data includes men between the ages of fifteen and eighteen, which the Naeaegama sample did not count Appendix Table 2.1. Drinking Statistics in Naeaegama, April 2006 Level Men % Women % Total % 0 (does not drink) 151 54.5 290 100 441 77.8 1 (drinks occasionally, at ceremonies) 44 15.9 0 0 44 7.8 2 (drinks more than once or twice a month) 35 12.6 0 0 35 6.2 3 (drinks more than four times a week or daily) 47 17.0 0 0 47 8.3 Total: 277 100 290 100 567 100.1 242 Appendix 2 as they did not appear on the election list.1 The ADIC survey also sampled men under forty at twice the rate that they sampled...