Caste & Camp People In Jaffna: Landownership & Landlessness
Photo: by Thanges Paramsothy, an IDP camp in Jaffna affected by the recent flood
Photo: by Thanges Paramsothy, Thalsevana Holiday Resort built in “HSZs” in the northern costal Jaffna called Kangesanthurai
By Thanges Paramsothy –December 8, 2015
Thanges Paramsothy
The issues confronting the Tamil IDPs in Jaffna have not been resolved for the last twenty-five years mainly due to the continuing presence of the so-called “High Security Zones” (“HSZs”) created by the Sri Lankan state and its forces. Tamils who were displaced from their lands of origin such as Palaali, Myliddy, Thaiyiddy and Kangesanthurai during the internal armed conflict between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the Sri Lankan state have not yet been resettled in their lands even after more than six years from the brutal end of the war.
Before going to discuss the caste and land issues of the IDPs living in IDP camps, a brief classification of the displaced people from the northernmost costal parts of Jaffna would be useful to get an overall picture of the IDP population in Jaffna. Those who were evicted can be broadly divided into four categories. The first group includes those who have been living in the IDP camps established in the Valikaamam and Vadamaraadchi regions following their displacement in 1990. The second group comprises those who are living with their friends and relatives. The third group has managed to buy land and built their own houses in Jaffna and elsewhere in Sri Lanka. A substantial number of individuals and families who make up the fourth group have migrated overseas following their internal displacement. In this piece, I discuss the challenges facing those who remain in the 32 IDP camps in Jaffna.
The IDPs living in the camps face a number of problems in their everyday lives. Poor infrastructure facilities, limited privacy, lack of employment, poverty, limited access to land, water and places of worship, the social stigma of living as IDPs for many long years in the IDP camps and so on can be listed as some of the issues that they face in their day-to-day lives. I do not look at all these issues in this piece. Limited or no access to land is one of the core issues that need to be resolved for any betterment to happen in the lives of these IDPs. Landlessness has indeed created other problems so that I call it a core issue.
