Discipline in Sri Lanka, punish in Pakistan: neoliberalism, governance, and housing compared

: In discussions of urban infrastructure and land, neoliberalism is often presented as a hegemonic economic model with, seemingly, identical outcomes across a range of historical and political circumstances. For instance, in large cities of the Global South, a combination of speculative capitalism, and increased privatisation in the provision of public services, has been blamed for structural dispossession and the pushing out of working-class and vulnerable groups from urban centres. However, little has been said about how these processes interact with more contextual specifici-ties—longer histories of state provision, existing inequalities, local political dynamics and legislative structures. Through comparative work on urban infrastructure projects in Lahore and Colombo, this article tells a story in which historical differences in state policy on housing and governance have impacted the ways in which dispossession is meted out, experienced and contested. Contributing to calls for studies of ‘actually existing neoliberalism’ (Wacquant 2012), we illustrate the importance of closely exam-ining the relationship between neoliberal policies and dispossession on the ground through a historical perspective. alongside a great deal of other new urban development. This paper draws from a comparative study of urban development in two South Asian cities—Lahore in Pakistan and Colombo in Sri Lanka—where state-led infrastructure development has resulted in the displacement of working-class neigh-bourhoods, the loss of livelihoods and especially the disruption of social networks of kin, care, and community. We examine how the state in each country responded to the problem of eviction and relocation: specifically how the state treated its citizens in carrying out evictions and in paying compensation for the loss of homes and livelihoods. We then consider in what ways and to what extent the state has recognised low-income communities living in cities as belonging to the city and as citizens of Pakistan and Sri Lanka, by tracing the history of the state’s involvement in providing adequate and affordable housing to the urban working-class poor.