Charting Uncertain Futures: Diaspora, Citizenship and Belonging among Up-country Tamils listing the various ethnic options, “The Tamils of Indian origin are classified as Indian Tamils, even though they or their parents may have obtained Sri Lanka citizenship by registration” (Department of Census and Statistics 2001, 3). While census employees may not have acted as instructed, the misidentification is just as likely due to individual Up-country Tamils claiming to be Sri Lankan, as malevolence or incompetence on the part of census officials. The fact that fewer Up-country Tamils were officially counted in the 2011 census is inarguable. What is arguable is why this was the case, though multiple factors are clearly involved, including identification as Sri Lankan Tamil, out-migration from the island, and decreasing family size. Whether any of these changes are positive or negative is another matter. For many Up-country Tamils, lower population statistics are an index of their decreased power in post-war Sri Lanka. Not only is the majority community not listening to minority concerns, but also there are now, at least officially, numerically fewer ethnic minorities to voice those complaints. Yet, all hope is not lost, and recent developments in Up-country Tamil parliamentary politics offer some potential possibilities. Despite a history that might indicate the contrary, Up-country Tamils have consistently trusted in the power of government and democracy to enact change and improve conditions for their community. During the war, Up-country Tamil political leaders regularly invoked their faith in working within the system, in contrast to separatists fighting to create Tamil Eelam. From the revocation of their citizenship after Independence, to the repatriation of nearly 40 per cent of the community in the 1960s and 70s, to the violence of the civil war, Up-country Tamils 13