Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Monstrous son of terrorizing Minister Mervyn remanded- sickeningly sick sons ?

(Lanka-e-News- 18.Sep.2012, 7.30PM) The two monstrous sons , Malaka and Rehan of the SL society terrorizing Minister , along with five others who were accused of assaulting a Major of the Army intelligence unit , and forcibly wresting the firearm and robbing the victim’s gold chain were remanded by the Fort Magistrate until the 27th of September.

Among those remanded were the driver of Malaka and five security personnel . Their names are : Hirumuthugodage Nalinda Janaka, Nagalage Don Nilu Aravinda, Vinodh Hewage, Suresh Pushpakumara, Aruwa Badathurage Sarath Upali and Ekanayake Pathirage Rumera Sathyajith . These suspects are to face an identification parade on the 27th.

The Major was assaulted on the 9th , yet the suspects , Malaka and Rehan were not taken into custody by the police until they came to the Slave Island police and surrendered .The police produced them in court after recording their statements. The Lawyers for Malaka and Rehan presented specious arguments and falsehoods to save the clients from remand custody without avail.

The Lawyers , Hemantha Warnakulasooriya, Jayantha Weerasinghe and Anton Senanyake told court that , Rehan before he goes to sleep has to fit a device to his body, and he is often ill.

Among the army , there was disillusionment and dismay that the laws are not being enforced duly . As there was a fear that the army may be forced to take the law into their hands because of the laxity in the investigations and the terror Minister’s monstrous sons may be risking reprisals , the two sons had finally decided to surrender.Notorious Minister Mervyn the vermin himself appeared to surrender his son Malaka , but unlike on other occasions this usually hooliganism prone Minister was as meek as a mouse before the media. Mervyn also came forward on behalf of Rehan , a son of former Minister Mano Wijeratne. Rehan is the co ordinating secretary of Mervyn Silva.

Politicization of Noble Legal Profession

Tuesday, 18 September 2012

The legal profession is abuzz with rumours that several new President’s Counsel are to be appointed by President Mahinda Rajapakse overlooking many qualified senior lawyers.

Appointing of Presidents Counsel are by the President in terms of the Constitution and they have to be granted to persons who have reached eminence in the profession and achieved high standards of professional rectitude. Among distinguished President’s Counsel appointed in the past have been H.L. Silva, Maureen Senaviratne, B.J. Fernando, Faisz Musthapha, Romesh de Silva and many others. Even in the time of President J.R. Jayawardena and R. Premadasa lawyers who appeared against the government or who were not of the ruling party were appointed by the UNP Presidents. Among them was A. K. Premadasa, Maureen Senevirate, H.L. de Silva and Nimal Senanayake.

This time around the politicization which has crept into the public service is now overwhelming the legal profession when the appointment of President’s Counsel are not on the basis of the respect or eminence or competence in the legal profession but on the basis of their sheer political allegiance and personal allegiance to the ruling family.

Among those whose names are on the list are Kalinga Indatissa who is competent authority for several enterprises taken by an act of Parliament last year and who was named a Respondent by Sarath Fonseka in the Presidential election petition for giving a misleading statement on TV on election day misrepresenting the law, Priyantha Jayawardena (who appears for Basil Rajapakse in several cases), Kuvera de Zoysa (in whose case Namal Rajapakse marked his first appearance as a lawyer), Ali Sabry (lawyer for Gotabhaya Rajapakse and Dilith Jayaweera). Three years ago, President Rajapakse imposed a 30 year limit appointing only those over 30n years in practice.

This time around the limit has been cut almost in half to accommodate the prospective Political Counsel (PC) most of whom were required to mark their appearance in the case against Rishard Badurdeen on September 5th in order to show their loyalty to the ruling clique (as against the judiciary which has stood up to political thuggery.) It is reported that the first list was drawn up and promoted by Indatissa himself. Among those being appointed is one deserving nominee Sanjeewa Jayawardena whose redeeming factor was that he had appeared for the Army in the cases against Sarath Fonseka and was junior lawyer to the Helping Hambanthota case.

Majeed sworn in as Eastern CM

UPFA Provincial Council member Najeeb A. Majeed was sworn in as the Chief Minister of the Eastern Province, before President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the temple Trees a short while ago, sources said.

They said, following the SLMC's decision to support the government in the Eastern Provincial Council, the government had named Majeed for the post with the approval from all the stakeholders.

It was also decided to offer two Ministerial Portfolios to the SLMC.

Commitments Made Must Be Implemented Before Attending The PSC – TNA To Rajapaksa

By Colombo Telegraph -September 18, 2012

TNA leader R. Sampanthan asked President Mahinda Rajapaksa to appoint a civilian as Governor of the Northern and Eastern provinces. TNA leader met the president this morning at the Presidents House to discuss the issues related to Eastern elections.

Responding to Smapnathan’s request Rajapaksaasked Sampanthan to attend the Parliamentary Select Committee and raised the matter. Sambanthan responded by stating that the TNA has never taken up the position that it will not attend the PSC, but has only insisted that commitments made must be implemented before attending the Parliamentary Select Committee sessions.

Click here to read TNA leader’s official statement after

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PARLIAMENT

Statement

Following on an invitation from Mr Lalith Weeratunga, Secretary to the President to the TNA leader Mr.

R Sampanthan on the night of L7th Septem ber 2012, for a meeting at the Presidents House on L8th

morning, a meeting took place between the President and Mr, Sampanthan as arranged. Ministers

Maithripala Sirisena and Prof G L Peiris were also present at the meeting.

The President congratulated Mr. Sampanthan on coming a good second at the Eastern Provincial Council

Elections and Mr. Sampanthan stated that if the Elections had been free and fair the TNA would have

come first. Mr. Sampanthan further stated that as per the mandate received by the TNA and the SLMC,

the TNA invited the SLMC to form a government and offered the SLMC the Chief Ministership. The UNP

would have backed such an arrangement. The President responded by stating that he was quite

prepared to sit in the opposition and indicated this to the SLMC and also referred to the offer made by

the TNA to the SLMC. He however stated that now things were finalized.

Mr. Sampanthan stated that the eleven members elected to the Eastern provincial Council from the

TNA should be.able to function freely and independently and without any deterrence or discrimination.

lf this did not happen it would mean that the Tamil people were being punished and that this should not

be allowed. Mr. Sampanthan also stated that five of the elected Provincial Council members from the

TNA were approached and. harassed with offers of vehicles, houses, money and contracts to cross over

to the Government and that the Telephone numbers and vehicle numbers of these persons, believed to

be military intelligence personnel, were available. The President initially denied this but later agreed to

look into the matter. Mr. Sampanthan also raised the question of resettlement in Sampur and in

Valikamam and the appointment of civilians as Governors of the Northern and Eastern provinces and

the appointment of Tamil speaking civilian officials as Government Agents of Trincomalee and Ampara.

The President responded by inviting Mr. Sampanthan to attend the Parliamentary Select Committee and

stated that these matters could be addressed when that process commenced. Mr. Sampanthan

responded by stating that the TNA has never taken up the position that it will not attend the PSC, but

has only insisted that commitments made must be implemented before attending the PSC sessions. lt

was agreed that this matter would be further pursued on the return of the President from his visit to

lndia.

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Ask President to fulfill demands made on behalf of whole education sector – Ven. Amila tells Bandula

TUESDAY, 18 SEPTEMBER 2012

The Vice-President of Federation of University Teachers’ Associations (FUTA) Ven. Dhambara Amila Thera has responded to the appeal made by the Minister of education Bandula Gunawardene.

The Minister had appealed to the university teachers to carry out evaluation of GCE A/L answer scripts on behalf of the children.

Responding to this appeal Ven. Dhambara Amila Thera, Senior Lecturer at Sri Jayawardenepura University, said they would like to appeal to Minister Bandula Gunawardene to appeal to the President asking him to fulfill the demands of university teachers that have been made on behalf of the whole education sector in the country.

New Research Highlights Risk For Tamils Returning To Sri Lanka

POLICE TORTURE DOCUMENTARY IN SRI LANKA 2012

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), in coordination with Right To Life in Sri Lanka, produces the following documentary on Police Torture in Sri Lanka.

New Research Highlights Risk For Tamils Returning To Sri Lanka

September 18, 2012

More shocking evidence of torture in Sri Lanka has been published by Freedom from Torture, highlighting the risk faced by Tamils returning to the country from the UK.

The latest research relates to 24 people who were tortured in Sri Lanka after returning voluntarily from the UK since the end of the civil war in May 2009.

In the vast majority of cases, individuals were in the UK on student visas and returned to Sri Lanka – mid-studies and with the intention of a short visit – for family reasons. After arriving back in Sri Lanka they were targeted for detention and torture due to a real or perceived association with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and, in many cases, their alleged support for the LTTE whilst in the UK or even just their knowledge of LTTE activity in the UK.

The returnees were subjected to a range of torture methods including deliberate burns with cigarettes and heated metal instruments, beating with PVC plastic pipes or whipping with cables and partial asphyxiation using water or plastic bags containing petrol. Such ill-treatment has inevitably resulted in long-lasting physical and psychological injuries.

Keith Best, Freedom from Torture CEO, said:

All of the Tamils in this report returned to Sri Lanka voluntarily for what, in most cases, they thought would be a short visit. They certainly didn’t envisage being detained and tortured as the price for visiting their loved ones.

“The research shows that the Sri Lankan authorities will stop at nothing to extract intelligence about the activities of the Tamil community in the UK. Even those who go back by choice may face torture if the authorities think they’ve got any links at all with or knowledge about the LTTE either in Sri Lanka or the UK.”

Amidst reports – in the Independent and Guardian newspapers - that the UK government is planning a mass removal of refused Tamil asylum seekers to Sri Lanka next week (on as many as three chartered flights), Freedom from Torture has again called for a suspension of forcible returns to the country until the UK Border Agency’s removal policy for the country is updated to reflect the mounting evidence that Tamils, who have an actual or perceived association with the LTTE, are at risk of torture on return from the UK.

Keith Best added:

Forcing Tamils back on high profile charter flights in these circumstances is a highly risky affair. Of course the Sri Lankan government is alerted in advance of their arrival and will suspect that they’ve accused it of persecution, which arguably makes them even more vulnerable than those going back under the radar and of their own volition.”

Read the 16-page briefing (13 September 2012) here

MDMK workers leave for Sanchi to protest Rajapakse's visit

Turning down a request made by Madhya Pradesh [ Images ] Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan to Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam [ Images ] general secretary Vaiko -- to call off his party's protest against Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse [ Images ] -- party workers on Monday left for Sanchi to demonstrate against the violation of rights of Tamils in the island nation.

"We have turned down the request of the Madhya Pradesh chief minister and urged him to allow us to protest peacefully in a democratic manner against Rajapakse's visit. Nearly 1,000 people in 41 buses have left Chennai's Marina Beach, after paying their respect to Anna Durai, for Sanchi to stage a peaceful demonstration. Vaiko is leading the convoy of 41 buses and we will reach Sanchi by September 20-21," said MDMK sources.

The MDMK general secretary had written a letter to Chouhan requesting him to cancel Rajapakse's visit to lay the foundation stone of the International Buddhist University at
Sanchi, as people in Tamil Nadu hold him responsible for the killing of a large number of Tamils in the island nation.

Chouhan had earlier written to Vaiko, requesting him to give up the protest, claiming that the programme at Sanchi is totally apolitical in nature, as it was aimed at bringing together civilisations of several Asian countries.

Chouhan also said that his government has extended an invitation to the heads of nearly 15 Asian countries, including the prime minister of Bhutan, who will be at Sanchi to take part in the programme.

The First Lady’s relative to sell Milco

Tuesday, 18 September 2012

A plan is underway to gradually push the Milco Company towards privatization pointing out the inefficient administration and lack of facilities, company sources said.

Sources said the new Managing Director of Milco, who is a close relative of the First Lady, Sunil Wickremesinghe is making the relevant plans to privatize the company.

The company purchases milk from the dairy farmers and destroys most of them. Over 400,000 liters have been destroyed so far. The total quantity of milk collected from local dairy farmers stand at 600,000 liters and the Milco Company uses only less than 200,000 liters.

The company has informed its regional milk collectors to collect all the milk brought to them by dairy farmers. The current certified price of a liter of milk is Rs. 40. A large amount of money has been allocated by the Treasury to purchase milk and the throwing away of milk has resulted in the waste of public monies.

A trade union leader at the company has said the new Managing Director is planning the handing over of Milco to a private company by showing its inefficiency and the lack of required machinery.

The sacking and transfer of employees who question this process is the first step towards the Managing Director’s path towards privatization. It is learnt that while four employees who had questioned these moves have been sacked one employee had been transferred to Anuradhapura.

Jaya's stand on Lankan Tamil issue nuanced & principled
NT Bureau | Mon, 17 Sep, 2012

No other issue touches an emotional raw nerve among the citizens in Tamilnadu as much as much as the plight of Sri Lankan Tamils.

The core aim of the right-thinking people has been a constant: To ensure safety of the Sri Lankan Tamils and help get them their due rights from a violently-disposed, apartheid-practising Lankan government.
But the complexity of the whole problem is such that it doesn't lend itself to understanding in easy black and white terms, the colours to comprehend it have to be varied and vivid.
The Tamils there have been buffeted and bludgeoned by not only a chauvinistic Buddhist majority, but a militant Tamil ruff also spoiled the legitimacy of their cause. Further, a time-serving, lip-servicing chest-thumping political ragtag from Tamilnadu have been keeping themselves warm on the pit-fire of a timeless tragedy.
It is in this context that Chief Minister Jayalalithaa's very principled, and more importantly, nuanced stand for the welfare of Lankan Tamils stands out in bold relief.
Why her position on the issue is circumscribed by moral right is the fact she was able to draw an important distinction between the ordinary Lankan Tamils and the violent Tigers who, in the eventual scheme of things, did a lot of harm through their blood-lusty methods to an essentially noble fight. As the Chief Minister over her three different tenures, Jayalalithaa steadfastly opposed the ways of the Tamil Tigers, whose trigger-happy approach cast a dark shadow in this country, too.
And after the Tamil Tigers were virtually wiped out by the Rajapakse government in 2009, marking a major watershed in the narrative, Jayalalithaa has been at the forefront in fighting for the Lankan Tamils both at the international arena (by passing resolutions in the Assembly condemning the Lankan government) as well as with the Central government here.
Be it her firm and timely opposition to the training sought to be given to the Lankan armymen and airforce personnel by India, or be it her repeated appeals on the Katchatheevu island issue (a fresh plea is to be filed in the case with the Supreme Court this week) or be it in fighting for the safety of Tamil fishermen on the high seas between India and Lanka, Jayalalithaa has spared no effort both as the Chief Minister as well as a tall leader of the Tamils.
There may be many slippery skeins of the Lankan Tamil issue, but Jayalalithaa has never lost her footing because her steps are measured and methodical.
So it is more than laughable when the DMK and its chief M Karunanidhi makes vague, intemperate noises against her and the AIADMK on the issue.
As a matter of fact Karunanidhi's has been a classic, and cruel, case of running with the hare but hunting with the hounds on the Lankan Tamil issue. As being part of the Central government, Karunanidhi could have helped to deliver a lot for the Tamils. But at every turn, he chose to ignore the sorry predicament of the Tamils, and instead safeguarded his own and his family's interest.
If his sham of a fast (lasting between breakfast and lunch) when the war in Lanka was far from over (and the UPA government was in a position to actually stop the genocide in the last days of the war in 2009) was a heartless joke, his subsequent posturings have been just high on bombast and braggadocio.
In 2009, months after the Tigers were quelled, the DMK's men were part of the Indian parliamentary team that flew to Sri Lanka to have a look at the plight of Tamils lodged in the refugee camps there. Nothing really came out of the trip, except bestow a backdoor legitimacy on the working of Rajapakse government. But not a squeak of protest from Karunanidhi.
Even with regard to the review petition filed on behalf of the three convicts facing execution for the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, Karunanidhi stood exposed.
The three convicts wrote to Jayalalithaa seeking commutation of death sentence. Jayalalithaa, however, pointed out that she did not have power to commute death sentence of the convicts. She said the convicts should appeal to the President again because the Chief Minister could not do anything after the President rejecting their mercy pleas. 'Only the President of India has the authority to commute death sentence. It's beyond my powers,' she told the Assembly then. But, she took the lead in enabling the State Assembly to pass a resolution seeking pardon for the trio.
The three were given the breathing space to move the High Court which has put on hold their sentence. So there is some hope for them.
But Jayalalithaa did well to expose the chicanery and double standards of Karunanidhi whose Cabinet had actually written to the Governor in 2000 to reject the trio's mercy petitions and commute only the death sentence of co-accused Nalini to a life term.
Staying away from politics, Jayalalithaa took a principled stand and played by rules and conventions on that occasion. It has been her hallmark.
Sadly, her chief political rival has been just muddying the waters much to the detriment of all concerned.

Temples, Rose Petals and Guns

POST 21 AUGUST 2012

BY SINTHUJAN VARATHARAJAH

A rosy sky appearance rocked this year's Nallur festival when a Sri Lankan Army helicopter appeared in the cloudy sky of Yaalpaanam (Jaffna) above tens of thousands of devotees who gathered to celebrate this year's Nallur Thiruvila (chariot festival). Infamous for its engagement in spraying bullets and dropping shells on citizens, constructed as enemies and enemies constructed as terrorists, the Sri Lankan Air Force's performance during the festival prophesied nothing but fear and terror in the minds of local and distant viewers of this very spectacle. The mere sight of Sri Lankan military power flying above a defenseless crowd of Tamils returned countless memories of buildings and humans that turned into unidentifiable piles of charcoal and ash by a military force that captured people, land, water and sky.

Instead of dropping bombs, the Sri Lankan Army helicopter released rose petals on the masses of Tamil Hindu devotees who came to celebrate this festival’s holy day. What seemingly can, and most likely will be interpreted by some, including many Tamils, as an act of positive engagement, a proof of reaching out to the ethnic group and an illustration of the Sri Lankan Government led 'politics of reconciliation' (that of course begs to be commended) urges us to look behind this facade to discover what things really are, and versus what they seem to be. Yaalpanam (Jaffna) today is and what it shares as communality with all of the traditional Tamil regions of the island is their state of occupation. Whether during or after this year's Nallur Thirivula, Yaalpanam remains to be a peninsula under occupation; a people under siege.

Invisible Structures Read more...

Pacifying guns and civilizing violence

Army Major Now Says Malaka And Rehan Did Not Assault Him

By Colombo Telegraph -September 18, 2012

The Army Major Chandana Pradeep, who was injured during a brawl at JAIC-Hilton Colombo now says Malaka Silva and Rehan Wijeratne did not assault him.

His lawyer filed an affidavit before the Colombo Fort Magistrate today stating that Malaka Silva and Rehan Wijeratne did not assault him, Colombo media report says. The affidavit also stated that five others, who are in the remand prison, have assaulted him and also agreed to settle the matter amicably.

Meanwhile both Malaka Silva and Rehan Wijeratne, who were ordered to be remanded by the Fort Magistrate yesterday, were admitted to the Prison Hospital from the Magazine prison and the other five suspects were transferred to the normal prison ward.

Malaka & Rehan

admitted to prison

hospital

Lanka Killing Fields Lanka Killing Fields Lanka Killing Fields

Monday, September 17, 2012

VIDEO: MALAKA AND REHAN REMANDED OVER ASSAULT...

Malaka Silva and Rehan Wijeratne were produced before Colombo Fort Magistrate today (17) and were remanded until September 24 for the alleged assault on an Army Major at a Colombo five-star hotel on September 8. Malaka Silva and others surrendered to the Slave Island police this morning. (Pics by Osanda Daham Nimsara)

The struggle to go home in post war Sri Lanka: Manthuvil in the Mullativu district

16 Sep, 2012-Ruki

Last Friday, 14^th September, I visited friends from Manthuvil and Puthukudiruppu, both in the Mullativu district who are trying to resettle in their own houses.

One friend has a lovely house in four acres of land in Manthuvil, along the Puthukudiruppu – Mullativu road. He and I had both heard from separate sources that the area had been demined a long time ago. In fact, there are no signs warning of mines or explosives near his house, as I had seen in many areas in the North. However, the Army continues to deny my friend and his family permission to return to his home. He is desperate and yearns to return after being forced to stay away for many years. My friend says that the Army has persistently refused him and others in the area permission to return, without providing any official reasons for the restriction.

In August, as most people around the area began to resettle, including on the opposite side of the Puthukudiruppu – Mullativu road to his house, my friend decided to erect a temporary shed opposite his house, with the permission of the land owner, in order to watch over his land and what remains of his house. He claims that most of what remained, after the end of the war including windows, doors, ceiling sheets, roof tiles and even the toilet commode, has been robbed and fears that whatever is remaining will also be stolen in his absence. My friend is unsure whether the missing roof tiles had been stolen or damaged during the fighting. He suspects they were stolen along with other fixtures in his house, since not even broken tile pieces remain. Some of these had been there just a month ago.

My friend had 300 coconut trees on his land before his displacement. Some had been damaged in shelling, but my friend says that the coconuts from the remaining trees had also been stolen in the intervening years. He suspects that the Army stole most of the produce or permitted others to steal from his land, as the Army remains in full control of the area and is quick to chase him – the owner – whenever he enters his property. If the reason my friend is prevented by the Army from entering his land is indeed because of mines or explosives, these seem to grant a special kind of immunity to robbers!

My friend has been lucky to some extent because a relative allowed him and his family to live in a house in Killinochchi until they could return to their own house. However most people from Manthuvil are not so lucky, and had no choice but to remain in Menik Farm camp for more than three years till they are allowed to return home. Like my friend, they long to go home – but earlier this week, the Army told them that they will only be allowed to go back home in around December. Given the many broken promises and delays, no one has any confidence in any such commitment or promises by Government officials, politicians or the Military.

As we were talking just outside my friend’s house, a bus passed on the Puthukudiruppu – Mullativu road. We could hear the sound of baila music inside the bus. Clearly they were in a very happy mood. My friend was clearly not happy, and said that “Hundreds of these buses pass by everyday with Sinhalese tourists from all over the country. They go to see the war monument and exhibits, but they never stop and talk to us to find out how we are doing and they seem utterly indifferent and seem not to care about our sufferings and the injustices we are subjected to”.

In the last month or so, several people in nearby villages such as Mullivaikal, Valaignarmadam, Anandapuram had been finally allowed to resettle in their villages after more than three years. All people that we met complained of lack of any assistance from the Government. But they were happy to be back in their own land despite the danger or unexploded landmines, lack of basic services and the terrible memories of loved ones being killed, injured and running over the dead and dying during the final months of the war. Many spoke of the “box” in Anandapuram, where many LTTE cadres and leaders had been killed after being encircled from different sides by the Sri Lankan Army during the final phase of the war in 2009.

In several places, people showed me bombs and unexploded explosive devices. In the absence of any government assistance to clear shrub jungles, people set fire to clear the jungles despite the expressed fear of explosions being set off. A common complaint among returnees was that doors, windows and ceiling sheets had been stolen from their houses. Sisters in the Holy Family Convent in Puthukudiruppu had come to live in a makeshift and basic shelter next to the damaged Convent a few weeks ago. However they found that all the doors and windows in the Convent, that had been there just a few weeks ago, had been stolen by the time they returned.

Later on in the evening, I stopped by the Our Lady of Velankanni church, also located on Puthukudiruppu – Mullativu road, located just a few meters towards Mullativu after the extravagantly built war monument and war museum in Manthuvil. Since 8th September, the tiny Church dedicated to Mother Mary has provided shelter to 6 families, consisting of 24 people, including 14 children. Despite being Hindus, they were extremely respectful of the church they had sought shelter in and even lit candles as Catholics usually do.

These people had collectively owned 10 acres of land just next to the huge war monument in Manthuvil. They like many others had waited for more than three years to go home, after the end of the war. But when they were finally brought for resettlement along with other people in the area on 8th September, they were in for a shock, as they found their land occupied by the Army. From what we found out, the Army had acted arbitrarily and not followed existing legal procedures to acquire the land, even though these families had deeds and permits showing land title.

According to the families, the Army had no qualms in telling them to find an alternate place to stay as they ( the Army) needed more time to vacate the land they had been occupying for over 40 months rent free!. The owners state that the land was full of coconut trees and they had looked forward to the income and to be self sufficient after being displaced and dependent on NGOs, UN agencies and other well-wishers for several years. The owners had insisted that they wanted their land back as they had nowhere else to go and they had been suffering for more than three years as displaced persons. Finally, the Army had agreed to leave in two days. But this deadline is long passed and the Army continues to occupy this private land.

I remembered that the people of Mullikulam, in the Mannar district were also chased away by Army with assurances that they could return in 2-3 days time, but after more than five years, these people are still waiting to go home. I didn’t have the heart to share that with these people. Perhaps they know better than I of promises made by an occupying force. The families have complained to the Government officials and they (the owners) even agreed to give the Army part of their land. However, they later came to know that the Army was demanding a larger extent of land than they had agreed to give. When it was pointed out that there was a lot of state land available nearby, the Army had told them that as these were lowland, it was not suitable for an Army camp and that the people could settle there instead. The people complained that “They (the Army) want to grab our land and send us to lowland that they say is not even good for them”.

As we were talking we saw several busloads of what appeared to be Sinhalese tourists visiting the war monument and the war museum, pass by. In the face of obvious suffering and injustice, the words of my friend from earlier that day, rang true. The tourists do not seem to see these people or don’t seem to care or maybe even don’t want to know the bitter truths of what the Army is doing to people in the North.

I also visited Rajini and other friends who had returned to their lands in August 2012 and about whom I had written earlier. I was happy to see that the jungle around their houses had been cleared. I was able to go to Rajini’s house through a footpath, unlike the shrub jungle I had to go through last month. My friends spoke of the effort it took to clear the jungle and put up their temporary houses. The majority are women, the men having been killed, disappeared or held in Government detention centers.

They continue to face challenges in earning a steady livelihood. Rajini was a seamstress before displacement, but had lost the sewing machine during the war as they scrambled to save their lives. Some had got assistance to buy bicycles, solar powered panels etc. from well wishers, friends, NGOs etc. But according to people I met, there has been absolutely no assistance from the Government towards their resettlement. Many women headed families living alone amidst shrub jungles live in fear at night, as there is no electricity and little protection. Many have got themselves mobile phones which is their only link to the outside world, but they face problems to recharge their phone batteries and often have to travel far to reach a point where they can recharge the battery.

I was happy to find that people who had sought shelter in the St. Joseph’s Church Puthukudiruppu and the Puthukudiruppu Roman Catholic School until they cleared the jungles and erected temporary shelter had also left these common buildings. The church is heavily damaged, but services had started. The school which had also been heavily damaged had started classes on 3rd September. According to one teacher, it had around 430 students at the beginning of 2009, but now has only around 200. Classes are conducted up to grade 11 with just 10 teachers, with the primary school having only two teachers. Before, there had been 24 teachers. Computers had been looted and furniture and library has also been looted and damaged. The school building is not fully repaired and the whole of the upstair is not being used as the structure is unsafe. More than two classes are held simultaneously in some classrooms and some of the classes are held under trees in the garden.

The official Government version is that resettlement in the Mullativu district is in full swing and that it’s almost completed. But some as described above are re-displaced instead of being resettled due to Army occupation of their land. Others who had been told they can go back in July 2012 are still waiting to go home and they have not been told why they are not allowed to go back and when exactly they can go back. Those who had braved extreme odds and decided to resettle in their own villages struggle to cope with un-cleared shrub jungles, unexploded explosives, lack of livelihood opportunities, decent housing and other forms of assistance, with even the basic assistance coming from UN agencies, NGOs and well-wishers.