Archive for the ‘IDPs and Refugees’

Sons and daughters missing, missed, forgotten: LLRC’s failure in Sri Lanka

"My daughter has been missing since 15th of May 2009 from Valaijarmadam" ~ Vasanthathevi Kathirkamanathan from Ananthapuram, Puthukkudiyiruppu in Mullaithivu District

Tamil mothers, sisters, wives and daughters have not yet given up their hopes to find their disappeared sons, brothers, husbands and fathers. The tragedy of endless search continues for them. Some Tamil women have more than one tragedy to digest. Vasanthathevi Kathirkamanathan is still searching for her missing daughter. And, her husband has been missing since May 2009. “I don’t know whether he is alive or dead. My relatives want me to believe that he was hit by a shell during the heavy fighting in May 2009, and died on the spot. But, he was with me till the last moment on 18th May 2009. If he was hit by a shell, and died on the spot, I must have seen his dead body. Since, I have not seen his dead body, I am unable to believe that he was killed. I strongly feel he was made to disappear. My life is in limbo” says tearful Vasanthathevi Kathirkamanathan from Ananthapuram,…

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Mullikulam: Restrictions on fishing, cultivation, access to the church and school continue

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The continuous appeals and campaigns carried out by the people of Mullikulam, the Bishop of Mannar, Rt. Rev. Dr. Rayappu Joseph and members of the clergy and civil society seems to have finally borne some results, in terms of the resettlement process of the people of Mullikulam. Even though the situation is still far from ideal, and the people still aspire to return home, as the intention of the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) to stay put, is quite clear, and as the people have suffered for so long, they have reluctantly agreed to being resettled 750m outside of their original residential lands. Two and a half months since (December 26th 2012) the Defence Secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith met with the people of Mullikulam to discuss[1] their grievances,[2] we visited Mullikulam on 13th March 2013. We were able to see for ourselves and hear directly from the people about the progress made in terms of commitments[3] made by…

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Travails of the Women in the Vanni

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Photo courtesy Amantha Perera / Perambara (Following is a copy of  a presentation made by the author at a side event at the UNHRC in Geneva on 11th March, 2013 organised by the Co-operative Society of Netherlands in collaboration with the International Movement Against Discrimination and Racism)     All of us remember the day the war ended in Sri Lanka. While those in the rest of the country rejoiced, to  the Tamils, many of whom had friends and relations living in the war zones, it was a very sad day.    Thousands of persons had been killed in the final days of the war.  Thousands of others  walked  into the hands of the army waiting  to receive them and send them to the hurriedly established camps which they called welfare centres. The  292,000 odd persons who escaped death during  the war,  had to spend  nearly three years  in  refugee camps in which they were imprisoned till they were re-settled or re-located in…

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Grievances of Muslims in the North

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“It is not only inhumane to be expected to live under such terrible conditions, but these conditions are also a breeding ground for mosquitoes and the spread of other communicable diseases. If the water is not pumped out manually, it will be at least April by the time all the water left over by the floods evaporate,” said a distraught Muslim IDP from Uppukulam, Mannar, whilst pointing to a stagnant pool of water left by December’s flood (2012), in his backyard. He, together with his wife and widowed daughter live in a one-roomed shack in Uppukulam since their return in 2000. Muslim families in Uppukulam, Kondapitty (Mannar District), who were evicted by the LTTE in 1990, were given permit land by the State and permitted to return to Uppukulam in 2000. Having lived in cadjan huts for years, some families have been moved to an Indian Housing Scheme four years ago. Of the 96 houses built, only 50 (comprising approximately…

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The Significance of Revolving Funds in the Rehabilitation of those Re-settled

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Image courtesy World Bank Most  those who have been  resettled or re-located  in the Wanni District of Sri Lanka  after the war  have found that they have to start life from scratch.  The re-settlement allowance of Rs.25,000 paid to each of these families was found to be hardly enough to do anything meaningful to make a start.  Most of the infrastructure   which   had  helped them to sustain themselves in their villages  before the war,  has been destroyed.  Roads, buildings, water tanks, canals and channels leading water to their cultivations  in their respective villages are in a state of disrepair. Consequently  re-starting life has been a challenging task  for these families.  Many of them  have lost their male members either during the war. Some  have been taken into custody or have disappeared thereafter.   The surviving women have to fend for themselves, their children and often their aged parents as well.   They  neither have resources, skills  nor the cash needed for them…

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Sri Lanka Navy vs. the people of Mullikulam

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“The Cardinal never even visited our church or spoke to our children. He came directly to the Navy Head Quarters for the meeting and left soon after. On my way to the meeting, it was pouring with rain. As I was exhausted when passing my old home, I asked a Navy officer there if I could take shelter from the rain there as it was where I used to live. He refused and told me that I’d better continue on my way,” said a village elder in desolation. “Whatever they (the Government) are offering you, please accept, as I will come forward as your guarantor,” said His Eminence Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith to the people of Mullikulam, at the outset of the meeting[1] held between them and the Defence Secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa on December 26, 2012, to discuss their plight, having been displaced by the occupying Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) since 2007. The Bishop of Mannar, Most Rev. Dr. Rayappu Joseph, was…

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Ashraf Nagar: The Courageous Struggle of Peasants against the Forcible Land Acquisition in Ampara District

Ashraf Nagar’s inhabitants can trace back their history to 1952 when it consisted of the following small villages – Aalim Nagar, Vilankadu, Kasangkeni, Muthiriyadiwattai, Pallak Kadu, Sinna Pallakkadu, Kattu Vattai, Ali Mudakadu and Aalim Chennai. Ashraf Nagar’s name was changed in the year 2006 to Oluvil first division and even though it consisted of Muslims, Sinhalese and Tamils the majority of inhabitants were Muslims. Around 156 Muslim families are said to have lived there around this period. By 1972 this number had increased to 272 families and to accommodate the growing need, a Jumma Mosque was established in Aalim Chennai. Over several decades the people in Ashraf Nagar have faced obstacles for their development and in creating a life of peace due to the intervention of several state and non -state actors. It is reflective of the plight of many such villages across the country especially with people who lack economic or political power. In 1983 due to ethnic tensions…

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“Nothing to call our own…” – The plight of the recently returned, resettled and landless IDPs in Sri Lanka’s North

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Photo by author Recently returned to Puthumathalan “As you drive past pile upon pile of corroding vehicles stacked one above the other, past pots, pans, sarees, slippers and plates (that once belonged to the people here), strewn all over the ground, and past the bullet and shrapnel splattered walls of homes ravaged by the war, on either side of the dusty, gravel roads of Puthukkudiyiruppu (PTK), you cannot help but feel the deep sadness and hopelessness that pervades the air around us.” According to the government, Menik Farm has been closed and all it’s inmates resettled. Having visited some of the most recently resettled, this seems to be the case, except for the fact that many have been relocated and not allowed to their places of origin due to military occupation of their lands[1], whilst others who have been returned to their places of origin, have been left without proper shelter, income or basic infrastructure and resources, to fend for…

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Menik Farm: The tragic end of a bitter saga, from detention to forced relocation

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“Why can’t the Army go to the jungles instead of taking our lands and sending us to jungles?” “When will we be allowed to re-start cultivation of our lands?” “When can we have access to the sea we were fishing before and will we get back the boats and fishing equipment we left behind in our village when we were displaced?” “Why is there a check point at the entrance to this place? “Why are there soldiers and intelligence officers all around us, why can’t we still have the freedom other people in this county have?” “Why are visitors not allowed to come and freely talk to us and take photos?” “Why have we been sent to another camp? What is different here from Menik Farm?” “Why didn’t the authorities clean up the jungles before they sent us here?” “When can we have a Kovil and Church?” These were some of the questions that people who had fallen victim to…

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Putting paid to the Government’s false claims: The new IDPs in Sri Lanka

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Editors note: On the day Menik Farm was officially closed, an urgent memo was circulated widely on the fate of the IDPs from Keppapilavu. The memo adds vital context to the following story, which also needs to be read in light of Government and Ministry of Defence claims that, there are no longer any IDPs in Sri Lanka. that they have all been resettled. that phrases like “Internally displaced people, relief camps & refugee camps” will not be there in Sri Lankan dictionary in future Urgent and disturbing | SOS: Memo from Keappapulavu displaced people cl.ly/2T1y2E0K170W @unocha @7piliers @lankasol #lka #srilanka — Groundviews (@groundviews) September 24, 2012 Also read Relocated to nowhere by the author, appearing in Ceylon Today. ### The war displaced community in Seeniyamottai in the Mullaitivu District have a story that is different to others. Unlike other internally displaced persons (IDPs) living within the confines of Menik Farm, Sri Lanka’s largest internment facility as well as the…

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  • 24 Sep, 2012
  • 6 Comments
  • Human Security,
    IDPs and Refugees,
    Post-War,
    Trincomalee

Update on the struggle to go home in post war Sri Lanka: Manthuvil in the Mullativu district

Temporary shelter of one family-22Sept2012

In relation to the 6 families who were staying at Our Lady of Velankanni church, original article available here. Due to insistence of the families, the Army had agreed to vacate the lands they (Army) had occupied and allow all six families to go back to their own lands. However, around two acres of lands remains occupied by the Army. About one acre belongs to one family, while the rest comprises of about half acre each belonging to two other families. The Army is refusing to hand over these lands. The Assistant Government Agent for Puthukidiyiruppu had promised to provide alternative land, but no places or dates had been given. However, the people insist they want their own land back. All the families mentioned that they have Permits for these lands. The Army had not paid any rent or compensation for the land occupied, with the occupation estimated to be for more than three years. The families estimate that the…

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Sri Lanka’s forgotten mass graves: Google Earth and remembering the dead in Nandikadal

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The end of war in Sri Lanka, captured for posterity by Google Earth published last week by Groundviews was the first look at the end of the war in Sri Lanka through historical satellite imagery freely accessible via Google Earth. The article was an open invitation for those using Google Earth to scan for and alert others over areas and artefacts of interest, that in turn could strengthen discussions around the hellish final weeks of war in Sri Lanka. Given the nature of imagery from around this period and centred on Nandikadal, the article explicitly noted, What Google Maps and Earth does NOT enable one to do, given (1) the quality of some of the historical imagery (which sometimes features extensive cloud cover of vast regions) and (2) the large gaps between the available historical imagery (mid March, late May, after the official end of the war and killing of the LTTE’s leader, then mid-June and early August) is any…

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The struggle to go home in post war Sri Lanka: Manthuvil in the Mullativu district

Discovery of explosives in resettled areas in Puthukudiruppu-14Sept2012

Last Friday, 14th September, I visited friends from Manthuvil and Puthukudiruppu, both in the Mullativu district who are trying to resettle in their own houses. One friend has a lovely house in four acres of land in Manthuvil, along the Puthukudiruppu – Mullativu road. He and I had both heard from separate sources that the area had been demined a long time ago. In fact, there are no signs warning of mines or explosives near his house, as I had seen in many areas in the North. However, the Army continues to deny my friend and his family permission to return to his home. He is desperate and yearns to return after being forced to stay away for many years. My friend says that the Army has persistently refused him and others in the area permission to return, without providing any official reasons for the restriction. In August, as most people around the area began to resettle, including on the…

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Who burnt houses of returning Muslim IDPs in Mannar?

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“We can see how the people are suffering but who are we to tell? Nothing can be done. Who can fight against the Government? The news on the ground is that the Defence Ministry is trying to secure 1500 acres to build a hotel in this area. This is the main reason they don’t want these people to return to their homes. As we all know what the Defence Ministry wants, it usually gets. Who can stop them,” were the words of a rather unusual source – a Police officer, who was stationed at Marichikattu in the Musali Division of the Mannar district, where 7 huts belonging to Muslims were allegedly burnt on the 3rd of September, 2012. It is not clear who was responsible for burning these houses – but several Muslim villagers said they suspect the Navy, and that they could be trying to intimidate the villagers from returning to this area. Click the images above for high…

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The end of war in Sri Lanka, captured for posterity by Google Earth

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When in early 2009, UNOSAT released satellite imagery of what later turned out to be the final weeks of Sri Lanka’s 27-year old war with the LTTE, the images were met with vehement Government condemnation, and counter-analysis by the Ministry of Defence. During this heady, hellish time, the subject of The Cage: The Fight for Sri Lankan & The Last Days of the Tamil Tigers by former UN spokesman Gordon Weiss and the recently released Still Counting the Dead: Survivors of Sri Lanka’s Hidden War by the former BBC correspondent Frances Harrison, while the President assured Sri Lankans and the world that heavy weapons weren’t being used, the satellite images from UNOSAT added to the confusion, showing clear and widespread indications of heavy shelling. The question then became when the shelling occurred. From the report by the UN Panel of Experts, appointed by the UN Secretary General to the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission’s Final Report, the trading of allegations…

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About Groundviews

Located at the Centre for Policy Alternatives in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Groundviews is a citizen journalism website that uses a range of genres and media to highlight critical perspectives on governance, reconciliation, human rights, the arts and literature, democracy and other issues. The site has won two international awards, including the prestigious Manthan Award South Asia in 2009. The grand jury's evaluation of the site noted, "What no media dares to report, Groundviews publicly exposes. It's a new age media for a new Sri Lanka... Free media at it's very best!"

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