By Amantha Perera
MANKULAM, Sri Lanka, Jan 13, 2012 (IPS) - It’s a new year, a new beginning but probably a harsher reality in Sri Lanka's former war zone. As the country enters its third year since the end of a bloody sectarian war that tore the nation's fabric apart, for many of the survivors of the worst fighting, a tough but true reality is dawning. Life in peacetime may yet be a hard struggle.
In the vast swath of land in the north known popularly as the Vanni, where large areas were controlled by the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) till their defeat in May 2009, tens of thousands have returned to their homes or to live with host families.
More than 236,000 had returned to the Vanni by the end of 2011, according to the government, and only around 6,500 people now remain displaced. When the war ended there were close 300,000 who had fled the battles, most escaping the fighting with nothing in hand. Full Story>>>
