20 July, 2011 Struggle of IDPs in Kilinochchi  |  |
Two years after the end of the Sri Lankan war, hundreds of thousands of displaced Tamil civilians are returning to the northern villages which they fled as the army chased the Tamil Tigers from the land they had controlled. Outside access to the north has long been heavily restricted.
BBC correspondent Charles Haviland recently secured unconfined access to Kilinochchi, once the headquarters of the Tamil Tigers, and met some of those trying to rebuild their lives.
Haveiland spoke to many Internaly displaced civilians who trying to resettle in the former war zone.
Many of them are struggling to put up temporary shelters while struggling to overcome the trauma of war.
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Chandrasegaran Thayakaran said "We’re glad we’ve come from the camp to our own village. But I lost my mother, my little brother and my elder sister and brother in the war. We’ve come here without our family. So we’re not really living happily. “
Like every family, Thayakaran has received a a small UN grant when they came out of the refugee camp, but have had to pawn their possessions to get by. They’re now building with the help of Save the Children.
Kilinochchi, long ruled over by the Tamil Tiger militants, was completely depopulated as the war front advanced more than two years ago.
The Tigers forced everyone to go with them and thousands of civilians – no one knows how many – were subsequently killed.
The Government Agent of in Kilinochchi, told the BBC that the government has been helping many returnees get their lives going with training and cash support. But some have clearly slipped through the net and say they’re getting almost nothing.
The government says it’s developing the north – but big road and electricity projects are not yet benefitting everyone, observed Havilland.==============================================================
UNICEF supports effort to trace missing children in post-conflict Sri Lanka
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| © UNICEF Sri Lanka/2011/Fletcher |
| Jhoncy (centre), 20, is flanked by her sisters Nirojini,14, and Jenitta, 11, outside the children’s home where they live in northern Sri Lanka. Their brother Jhonson, 17, is missing. |
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, 20 July 2011 – Jhoncy sits in the shaded courtyard of a children’s home, alone in quiet thought. Understandably, she has a lot on her mind.
When we arrive, Jhoncy, 20, gets up from her chair and wanders over to greet us. We shake hands and she looks us in the eye. Her first question is, “Can you help me find my brother?”
More than two years have passed since she last heard of Jhonson, who should be 17 years old. He has disappeared. Jhoncy’s quest to know what has happened to him has become the source of a deep, lingering pain for her. Full Story>>>
