GOSL: Displacing own citizens! by continuous war!!

Nearly 200,000 persons displaced during last two years in Sri lanka

Govt has to spend billions of rupees to provide relief

By Kelum Bandara and Yohan Perera

Nearly 200,000 persons have been internally displaced in the country during the last two years requiring the government to spend billions of rupees on providing relief to them, Disaster Relief Services Minister Amir Ali said in Parliament yesterday.The Minister made this revelation while answering an oral question by UNP MP Ravi Karunanayake. He said that the Kilinochchi district accounts for the largest number of 51,742 displaced persons, 41,084 persons had been displaced in Mullaitivu and 28,114 in Jaffna.

Besides, 18,171 persons have been rendered homeless in Batticaloa and another 18,372 in Vavuniya. The number of persons displaced in Mannar is 24,110, Trincomalee 5,254, Ampara 4,431 and 681 in Puttalam.

The Minister said that the government had spent Rs. 159 million in 2007 to provide relief to the displaced in Jaffna, compared to Rs,.15 million spent this year. The amount spent on Kilinochchi is Rs.146 million in 2007 and Rs.123 million in 2008.

On the displaced families in Puttalam, Rs. 206 million had been spent by the government last year.

At this point, Mr. Karunanayake raised a supplementary question whether money is allocated according to a political agenda. He said that the Puttalam district seems to have been favoured in the provision of disaster relief.

While denying this allegation, Mr. Ali replied these people had taken refuge in Puttalam for decades now, and they were the very people forcibly evicted by the LTTE.

In the meantime, the UNP MP also shot back at the Minister saying the number of families displaced due to the tsunami in the southhad not been included in these figuresand asked how it happened.

The Minister said that the tsunami rehabilitation is a subject which does not come under his purview.

“It is an issue falling under another Ministry,” he said. He added that he could not say for certain as to when these people will be resettled in their original places.

The Minister pointed out that resettlement would be done only after the de-mining operations were completed in the respective areas in keeping with the international standards after being liberated from the LTTE.

“We are yet to resettle people in Chenkaladi and Kiran in the Batticaloa district because of the ongoing de-mining work. After the international certificate is issued, we will resettle the persons there,” he said.