CAN WE TRUST THESE FIGURES...??? ¨
PRESIDENT SHD ALLOW TNA MPs FROM THE NORTH/EAST SL TO FIND THE TRUTH!!!
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SIGNS OF A BETTER FUTURE NOW LIES ON THE HORIZON…
By Kelum Bandara
A 44-year-old mother S. Nageswari of Parappakandal, Mannar fled her home in 2007 when the fighting raged between the security forces and the LTTE in the area. Displaced from her residence, she, along with others of her family, trekked through unfriendly jungle terrains towards the north.
When it rained, she said, all the paths through the jungle were streamlets. Finally, she succeeded in arriving at Mullaivaikkal which was packed with thousands like her who had fled from their homes. She wore mere rags, and had endured enormous hardships.
“We had to sell most of our jewellery to make ends meet since being displaced we did not have any income earning facility ,” she said huddling her little child.
Against all odds of the past, a sign of a better future now awaits her. The government has included her among those where were sent out from the relief villages and camps to be resettled in the villages from where they had fled.
When Daily Mirror reached her for her views last Thursday, she, along with others, were attending a function to mark another phase of the resettlement drive in Manthai-West Mannar.
The blazing sun beat down on the already parched terrain of the Mannar district, and a group of persons were sitting in plastic chairs under a tin-roofed hut. All around, it was abuzz with much activity. The event was a function to mark another phase of the resettlement drive in the Manthai-West area of the Mannar district.
All these people who were to be resettled in this particular area had been displaced for over two to three years due to the escalation of fighting between the security forces and the LTTE. From their original places of residence in Manthai-West, these persons had been gradually pushed further and further towards the north in the face of the advancing troops and some of them had eventually ended up in the safe zone near the Nanthikadal lagoon. They were people who had suffered ‘multiple displacements’ on their journey fleeing from the confict areas.
And in this process, they had lost most of their valuables such as agricultural implements, vehicles and fishing equipment.
But, on October 21, 2009 they looked happy and there were smiles of anticipation on their faces.
P. D. Lucia Hamy, an elderly mother, had not found life that much difficult because she had been able to enter the cleared areas during the early stage of pitched battles. Lucia Hamy, was a 68-year- Sinhala woman hailing from Ratnapura, who was married to a Tamil. She had met her husband when he worked at a liquor tavern in Ratnapura. At that time, she was only 22 years old.
“My parents did not like our affair. So, I eloped with him. Since then, I have not had any interaction with my relatives in the south. My husband died of fever 16 years ago. After that I have been looked after by my children,” she said in a broken Sinhala mixing it up with some Tamil words.
In the face of intense fighting, her family was pushed back from Mannar to Iranamadu where she took refuge finally.
“We were among the very first batch of people to arrive in the cleared areas. We were welcomed by the military. They looked after us well,” she said.
On Thursday, she was heading towards her original place of residence in Manthai-West with hopes rekindled in the post conflict period.
“I am going to see my house for the first time today. I do not know whether it remains intact or not,” she said.
The government has decided to send out people from the welfare camps and villages to their earlier areas of residence.. Each family is given Rs.25,000 to restart their lives from the devastation caused by the war. Of this amount, Rs.5000 is given in cash and the remaining Rs. 20,000 as bank deposit to be withdrawn in an emergency.
Besides, this financial support , with the assistance of India roofing sheets and agriculture implements such as mammoties are provided to enable them to start their livelihoods. The resettled persons are expected to rebuild their lives afresh in a land forsaken by the war-the biggest man-made disaster in living memory. The war destroyed their villages and towns, and left some of them traumatized and psychologically scarred. Among all these newly resettled displaced civilians, there is one common aspect -the yearning for life as it was.
The Bishop of Mannar Rt. Rev. Rayappu Joseph speaking to Daily Mirror on the sidelines of the major function, said that the children of these people had not received a ‘proper education’ during their displacement for over two more years. The Bishop pointed out that unless education facilities are placed on track in these resettled areas, the people may not wish to stay in the areas for a long period.
“People are concerned about the future of their children. If they do not find proper education facilities, they will start leaving again. There should be arrangements for students to catch up what they missed and schooling facilities should be quickly put into place.,” the outspoken Bishop said.
For him, he said, these people’s sufferings could not be explained in words, and no one should try to make profits even when working for them in the area.
“If there is any profit from a project or business meant for these people, that profit should also be kept for them . The social service arm of the Catholic Church, Caritas, does it. I do not mind anyone taking a salary for the administrative work,” he said.
And he also urged that if possible these people should be given back whatever remains of their valuables which they had abandoned when fleeing the fighting.
“Some of them had left behind their vehicles, agriculture implements and fishing boats and other equipment,” he said. The Mannar Bishop urged the international community to assist in the normalization of life in these areas.
Chairman of the Presidential Task Force for Resettlement MP Basil Rajapaksa said that a number of development projects had been launched, and people would be provided with everything to re establish their lives.
“We are now constructing the A 32 road which leads up to Pooneryn from Mannar. There will be another road constructed from Puttalam to Mannar. We will construct schools, agrarian services centres, hospitals and co-operative shops in these areas,” he said.
The foremost among the development projects is the rehabilitation of the Giants Tank which irrigates over 20,000 acres of paddy land.
Resettlement and Disaster Relief Services Minister Rishard Bathiudeen has announced that the de-mining operations will be expedited to resettle all the people during the least possible time.
Earlier, in the hands of the military, there had been only four de-mining machines. Later, the Minister said ten more machines had been imported. Plans are now afoot to purchase another ten machines from Tunisia to increase the total to 24.
“Various international elements and political parties criticize us. Nevertheless, we have done a great job. I am asking them to come and see,” he said.
According to him, over 91,000 persons have been resettled in Jaffna, Mannar, Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu. Another 196,000 are left to be resettled in these areas, and the Minister said that once the de-mining is completed, they too will be resettled.
“We have also cleared some lands, using bulldozers, which will be cultivated for the first time after decades,” he said.
For the new returnees, the government, with the assistance from the World Food Programme, provides dry rations for six months. This package includes, rice, dhal, wheat flour, cooking oil, sugar and salt. They were a people who never depended on mere dole by the state in the past. Today, they are left with no other option but to depend on relief assistance . But they are a people who have always been very industrious, and will get their lives back on track if the government lives up to its commitment as early as possible.
dailymiror.lk
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