Menik Farm: The tragic end of a bitter saga, from detention to forced relocation
Groundviews
by Ruki-2 Oct, 2012
“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 the Sri Lankan Government’s latest resettlement program asked us when we visited them last Sunday 30thSeptember 2012.
The bitter end to Manic Farm
Throughout August and September 2012, people from Puthukudiyiruppu and Maritimepattu Divisions in the Mullativu district, who had been living in Menik Farm were dumped in schools and roadsides to find their own way home[1]. “Home” was mainly shrub jungles, open air spaces under trees and destroyed houses with doors, windows, roofing, toilet equipment etc. looted. Some had to seek shelter in churches and schools, as their “home” was simply not habitable. Another group we met had been compelled to stay in a small church as the Army was occupying their land[2]. Clearly, the government which had waited for more than three years to send these people home, were now in a might hurry to send them home, without even clearing up jungles.
As news spread of imminent closure of Menik Farm at any cost, people in the Keppapilavu became apprehensive as they had heard that their lands were occupied by the Army and Air Force and they would not be allowed to go back to their own lands. On 20th Sept., about 55 families (exact number was not clear) from Manic Farm were taken to Vattrappalai school and brought to a jungle area in Seeniyamottai on 21st Sept. Amidst this uncertainty of going back home, several residents of Keppapilavu staged a protest in front of the Mullativu Government Agent’s office on 22nd Sept. There were reports of intimidation and attacks on vehicles of some politicians who attended this event[3]. Several IDPs in Manic Farm had also told that they were prevented from going for the protest. Those who did attend the protest sent out a public appeal asking to be allowed to go back home to their own lands[4].
On 22nd Sept. 2012, at a meeting held in Menik Farm, military and government officials had informed the remaining people that all those from Keppapilavu Grama Niladari Division in the Maritimepattu Divisional Secretarial Division in the Mullativu district would be relocated on 24thSept. On 24th Sept., all these people were unceremoniously taken to Vattrappalai Maha Vidyalaya, and on 25th, they were taken to a jungle area called Seeniyamottai, located in an interior area along the Vattrappalai – Puthukudiyiruppu road, in the Maritimepattu Division in the Mullativu district.
According to information provided by a Government Official, 346 people from 110 families in Keppapilavu have been dumped in Seeniyamottai camp. This information has been confirmed by the UN Country Team in Sri Lanka[5]. However, according to the people we met, the number seems around 160 families, though this could not be confirmed by the people or any official.
Re-displacement instead of resettlement Continue reading »
