Sri Lanka’s lies: Menik Farm closure: release of IDPs = ‘’resettlement’’ of IDPs A.Release and Re-displacement of IDPs, refusal to allow willing aid agents ( including the UN and ICRC ) help the returnees, refusing to endorse Common Humantiarian Action Plan by the government to get funding feom Geneva, high rate of malnutrition among children found by WFP, Refusal of government armed forces to vacate returnees’ houses, etc: 1.Ministry of Defence and Urban Development: ‘’The last batch of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) s was resettled in their villages in Mullaitivu on 24th September 2012. A total of 1186 persons from 361 families were thus resettled’’ - All IDPs resettled, 25 September 2012, http://www.defence.lk/new.asp?fname=All_IDP_resettled_20120925_02 2. Sri Lankan High Commission in London; ‘’ pictures conveyed the giant strides taken by President Mahinda Rajapaksa's government to rebuild and reconstruct ravaged areas with modern infrastructure as part of the effort at social and ethnic reconciliation which peace has brought to the land’’ - Sri Lanka In Pictures - A Captivating Photographic Display, 26 September 2012, http://www.srilankahighcommission.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=317:sr i-lanka-in-pictures-a-captivating-photographic-display&catid=22:hc-page&Itemid=109 Sri Lankan High Commission in Paris: ‘’I want to draw your attention to some photographs which depict the reconstruction of the war torn areas of our country’’ - International Photographic Exhibition “Sri Lanka in Bloom” held at the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Paris, 28 September 2012, http://www.srilankaembassy.fr/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2055%3Ainternat ional-photographic-exhibition-sri-lanka-in-bloom-held-at-the-embassy-of-sri-lanka-inparis&catid=100%3Aheadlines&lang=fr 3.(Highly militarised) Northern Province under the Governorship of a retired military officer: No more IDPs in Sri Lanka – a lesson to be learnt by world countries, 28 September 2012, http://www.np.gov.lk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1947:no-more-idps-in-srilanka-a-lesson-to-be-learnt-by-world-countries4.International organisations: lying low or lying for Sri Lankan government? a. IOM silent on ‘’resettlement’’ in its own website: http://www.iomsrilanka.org/iom/ IOM Completes Voluntary Returns from Sri Lanka's Menik Farm Displacement Camp, 25 September 2012, http://reliefweb.int/report/sri-lanka/iom-completes-voluntary-returns-sri-lankas-menik-farmdisplacement-camp b. UNHCR ‘s calculated words: Sri Lanka's displacement chapter nears end with closure of Menik Farm, 27 September 2012, http://www.unhcr.org/506443d89.html c. ‘’During my time working in Haiti after the January earthquake in 2010, several humanitarian workers from various United Nations agencies approached me regarding what they viewed as a parallel situation between ethical problems within the UN mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and what they experienced in the final months of the conflict in Sri Lanka’’ - Independent Report on Sri Lanka and United Nations Human Rights Violations, 10 April 2012, http://endoplasm.org/independentreport-on-sri-lanka-and-united-nations-human-rights-violations/ B.The ground reality: 1.‘’Removed from Sri Lanka’s onetime largest facility for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), the Menik Farm, on Monday (24) and relocated to Seeniyamottai in the Mullaitivu District, these 346 IDPs have little hope of resettling in their place of origin. ….In Seeniyamottai, there are over 400 families relocated following the closure of Sri Lanka’s largest internment camp, Menik Farm. From Mankulam it was a jerky three-wheeler ride on a bumpy and muddy road for over three hours. We set off around 9:30 a.m., only to reach the ‘IDP village’ around 12:30 p.m. ….We were rudely told that there was nothing for anyone to see inside a welfare camp and we should not be ‘overly curious.’ Facilitated largely by the military, it bore all signs of a camp that is still being set up’’ Relocated to nowhere, 29 September 2012, http://www.ceylontoday.lk/59-13681-news-detailrelocated-to-nowhere.html ‘’ Some Sri Lankan Tamils who left a vast displacement camp this week say they were "left in the jungle" with no means to rebuild their homes and lives’’ - Sri Lanka: Displaced Tamil families 'left in jungle', 27 September 2012, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-19748109 (more pictures: http://www.bbc.co.uk/tamil/sri_lanka/2012/09/120929_keppapilavupix.shtml ) ‘’Shelter, toilets, and water are regularly unavailable or restricted access for returnees. The jungle is usually not cleared and they have to do this themselves or pay someone to do this - they often stay on the side of the road until their land is clear. The returnees receive a few thin pieces of timber and some tarpaulin and have to construct a shelter. Lack of toilets is of particular concern to women who go into the jungle together because they fear attacks or harassment. Mine risk and UXOs is an ongoing concern and has become even more so in the recent rush to get IDPs out of Menik Farm. Many UXOs are found in the houses and lands of returnees’’ - IDPs reseltled: Ampalavanpokkanani, 21 September 2012, http://www.peacesrilanka.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=546:idps-reseltledampalavanpokkanani&catid=16:news The struggle to go home in post war Sri Lanka: Manthuvil in the Mullativu district, 16 September 2012, http://groundviews.org/2012/09/16/the-struggle-to-go-home-in-post-war-sri-lankamanthuvil-in-the-mullativu-district/ Who burnt houses of returning Muslim IDPs in Mannar?, 15 September 2012, http://groundviews.org/2012/09/15/who-burnt-houses-of-returning-muslim-idps-in-mannar/ ‘’There are several villages in Mullaitivu, Pudumathalan, Mullivaikal West, Mullivaikal East, Ampalavanpokkanai, Valaignarmadam, Anandapuram and Keppapulavu, – all these are coastal areas – where people have been living for generations fishing and carrying on their living. They have been asked to go to a place called Kompavil, seven to eight kilometres away from the sea. How can a fisherman live seven to eight kilometres away from the sea, Sir? Can he carry on his occupation by living seven to eight kilometres away from the sea? They are being compelled to go. They have been told, “You will have to go. You cannot say, no. You have no choice in the matter. We have chosen a place for you” and their land is being taken over and they have been sent there. I am told that steps are being taken to settle fisherfolk from the majority community in this area’’ - TNA Leader MP P. Sampanthan’s Speech In Parliament, August 22, 2012, http://sangam.org/tna-leader-p-sampanthanmps-speech/ "While there have been improvements, without doubt, food insecurity continues to be a serious cause for concern across pockets of the north. People there are really struggling," said Julia Vasconcelos, head of WFP's area office for Northern Province, citing rising food prices, lack of job opportunities, and high levels of poverty as contributing factors. In a recent nutritional survey in the north, the World Food Programme (WFP) estimated that more than 19,000 children under the age of five were suffering acute malnutrition’’ - SRI LANKA: Focus on food insecurity in Jaffna, 9 July 2012, http://www.irinnews.org/Report/95828/SRI-LANKA-Focus-on-food-insecurity-in-Jaffna ''Sri Lanka: Very restricted humanitarian space. Following a govt order issued in 2010 to close the ICRC’s remaining sub-delegations in the north and curtail planned assistance, several proposed programmes to assist resettling or returning populations did not take place’’ - ICRC Annual Report 2011, 25 June 2012, http://www.icrc.org/eng/assets/files/annual-report/current/icrc-annual-report-asia-and-pacific.pdf Re-displacement of Menik Farm inmates to Kombavil (Mullativu), 3 October 2011, http://groundviews.org/2011/10/03/re-displacement-of-menik-farm-inmates-to-kombavilmullativu/ ‘’In a recent development, the government has brought the NGO sector under the Ministry of Defence. In the past the NGOs were, more appropriately, under the Ministry of Social Services. The Ministry of Defence has also issued a circular that directs NGOs who intend to do projects in the North to register with it and to follow a stringent procedure of getting prior governmental permission for all activities and movements’’ – National Peace Council, 26 July 2010, http://www.peacesrilanka.org/~peace/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=274:extendingreconciliatonbeyond-honouring-the-individual&catid=1:latest&Itemid=121 ‘’Former detainees have been sent here almost without any assistance … ‘’There is no difference between staying in the detention camps and living here’’…. The Kilinochchi district was famous for agriculture and fishing. The large Iranaimadu tank (artificial lake) mainly supplied irrigation for several thousand acres of agricultural land. The tank is now under the military’s control. Water has not yet been fully released for farmers. A few farmers have begun cultivation but they do not have tractors or other basic equipment. Many do not have even a mammoty (a type of spade). Fishermen are not allowed to fish in the tank. ….At Poonahari, the Vikneswara School is now occupied by the military, so students must walk to another school five kilometres away. The military has also occupied Poonahari’s government hospital. As there are no longer any hospital facilities, people have to beg someone in the army camps to take any seriously ill patients to Kilinochchi in a military vehicle for treatment. Patients with minor illnesses simply have to suffer. In Vattakachchi village there is no hospital and no school, and the people live in tents. The houses were destroyed during the war. The local Vattakachchi and Ramanathapuram schools remain occupied by the military’’ - WSWS reporters visit the devastated Sri Lankan town of Kilinochchi, 2 June 2010, http://www.wsws.org/articles/2010/jun2010/srilj02.shtml ‘’There are currently over 11,000 individuals in Mallavi alone who are living in makeshift tents of plastic and polythene, and in partially destroyed structures. There is no running water or proper sanitation, resulting in a number of cases of Dengue fever. Additionally, there is a severe food shortage, and a lack of clean drinking water. While the GoSL provides all of those leaving the IDP camps with dry rations for a six-month period, there are numerous problems related to the implementation of such projects. A number of local villagers mentioned that while they thought they would receive dry rations and funds to get themselves back on their feet, they either did not receive these goods, or the goods and money were not enough to get by.’’ - Framework for Rebuilding Communities in Sri Lanka, ICAR(George Mason University) Newsletter, Volume4 Issue3, April 2010, http://scar.gmu.edu/newsletter-subject/9378 ‘’The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Sri Lanka has suspended the distribution of shelter cash grants to displaced returnees due to shortfalls in funding, Earlier this month, HT had reported how both the remaining refugees and the resettled were complaining that food and other donations had been cut’’ - 1.9 lakh Tamils resettled in Lanka, yet no relief in sight, 29 March 2010, http://www.hindustantimes.com/1-9-lakh-Tamils-resettled-yet-no-relief-in-sight/H1Article1-524454.aspx ‘’On the stretch of the A9 highway between Vavuniya and Jaffna, hundreds of released IDP families have put up flimsy tents or taken shelter in broken houses. After months in camps, they now have the freedom of movement. But little else.’’ - The refugees and resettled, Lanka’s nowhere people, 17 March 2010, http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/srilanka/The-refugees-and-resettledLanka-s-nowhere-people/Article1-520268.aspx ''The funding crisis follows the government’s refusal to endorse the 2010 Common Humanitarian Action Plan (CHAP)…. The UN and other humanitarian agencies are running out of resources to meet the urgent needs of internally displaced persons in the North’’ - No funds to meet needs of nearly 200,000 Northern IDPs due to govt refusal to endorse 2010 action plan, 13 March 2010, http://transcurrents.com/tc/2010/03/no_funds_to_meet_needs_of_near.html/ ‘’….. The first time I experienced the steps in grief, which I had lectured several times to my students…. Permission was denied to those who had relatives in Vaviniya who were willing to take them. Hardly any had all their family members living. They were being sent to different places like Kinniya, Polannaruwa, Mannar etc, which means even the slightest chance of a family reunion was questionable. …. Now, what is happening here is genocide in many forms. Needless to say scattering people all over to unknown and unfamiliar places will ultimately lead to a weak population and result in damages done to our culture, education, and relationships!’’ - A recent trip to Vavuniya: For the future looks dark and gloomy, 19 February 2010, http://groundviews.org/2009/02/19/a-recenttrip-to-vavuniya-for-the-future-looks-dark-and-gloomy/ ‘’Opposition MP have not yet been able to visit the IDP camps’’ - - The post-Prabhakaran government strategy in Sri Lanka and overseas, 20 October 2009, http://groundviews.org/2009/10/20/the-post-prabhakaran-government-strategy-in-sri-lanka-andoverseas/ “We are living in an open prison,” said Fr Seemanpillai Jayabalan, parish priest in Aripputhurai. “People have no hope for development. They have lost their property and many homes are a total write-off. NGOs are not allowed in the area’’ - Tamil refugees going home to an open prison, 15 September 2009, http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=16332&size=A ‘’The Sri Lankan government has told international relief agencies to cut back their activities in the country. … But it(ICRC) says an estimated 300,000 displaced people still need food, medicine and help to return home’’ - Sri Lanka orders cuts in aid work, 9 July 2009, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8142550.stm ‘’The Red Cross today suspended delivery of supplies to displaced civilians after the Sri Lankan government blocked access to camps in northern Sri Lanka’’ - Red Cross forced to suspend aid to civilians in Sri Lankan former war zone, 20 May 2009, http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/may/20/red-cross-unrestricted-access-sri-lanka ''The Sri Lankan Government has blocked access to aid workers trying to help the nearly 300,000 civilians displaced by the army’s victory over the Tamil Tigers, raising the prospect of a humanitarian catastrophe'' - Sri Lanka on brink of catastrophe as UN aid blocked, Robert Bosleigh in Colombo, 20 May 2009, http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6322658.ece 2.“It is now closed and there is no harm if people visit the site,” assured the Government Agent of Vavuniya. To this ‘accessible camp’ with no temporary shelters, we made a visit, and were surprised when told that entry required approval from a competent military authority. The Government Agent’s assurance was not good enough’’ - Closed and not accessible, 30 September 2012, http://www.ceylontoday.lk/59-13738-news-detail-closed-and-not-accessiblem.html
Report "Sri Lanka’s lies - Menik Farm closure - release of IDPs = resettlemen’ of IDPs"