Sri Lanka releases university students from welfare camps

Sri Lankan authorities have released the university students, living in welfare camps, because they could not pursue their studies in the camps, the Media Center for National Security said today.

The students have been released on Sunday to the transit camps in the University attached hostels of Jaffna University in Kainadi. Some students were handed over to the Vice Chancellor of University of Jaffna, Nagalingam Shammugalingum, and some others to their nearest kin. Read more ...

Sri Lanka Fisheries Ministry to introduce non conventional projects to acquire more aquatic resources in the North

The Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Ministry of Sri Lanka is to launch non traditional marine resource development projects under the "Uthuru Vasanthaya" accelerated development drive in the North.

The Ministry plans to undertake four different projects for this purpose at a cost of Rs. 800 million.

The projects aim to uplift the livelihood of the fishermen and get them adapted to fishing activities on new marine resources which are valued high in the foreign markets, sources added. Read more ...

Haphazard resettlement will endanger IDPs’ lives -- Keheliya

President Mahinda Rajapaksa was not ready to go by the agendas set by foreigners regarding the resettlement of IDPs, Foreign Employment Promotion and Welfare Minister and State Defence Spokesman Dr. Keheliya Rambukwella told the media in Kandy yesterday (13).

The minister said he granted that there were difficulties besetting IDPs in their temporary shelters but everything possible was being done to make their stay comfortable and to resettle them speedily. He said Sri Lanka could do without unsolicited advice from foreigners in carrying out those tasks for her own people. Read more ...

Contentious resettlement issue in the Jaffna HSZ being resolved

One of the most contentious issues in Jaffna, the resettling of civilians in the High Security Zone is finally going to be resolved with civilians now expected to be resettled in the 300 metre buffer zone bordering the HSZ before December as a first step.

Jaffna High Court Judge R.T. Vignarajah who chairs the Committee appointed by the Supreme Court to evaluate the problem and submit a report to court said last night that at their last meeting held the previous weekend, Jaffna GA informed the Committee that all mines had been cleared from the buffer zone and it was now a matter of submitting a list of people who are eligible to resettle there and for the army to check the veracity of the list.

Jaffna Military Commander Maj. Gen. L.B.R. Mark, who is a member of the Committee, according to the High Court Judge, had even remarked that it should be done before December so that resettled people will have time to enter their children to schools in the area for the new school year. Read more ...

Conditions in welfare villages excellent - Alok Prasad

"The conditions in relief villages in Sri Lanka are excellent compared to other countries and the facilities provided by the Sri Lankan Government to the people in relief villages are praiseworthy", said H.E Alok Prasad, Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka addressing a gathering in Colombo recently.

"Such the standard of these villages are outstanding and excellent", High Commissioner Alok Prasad was further quoted as saying at the event held in appreciation of the services provided by the Indian medical team.

The Indian medical team was in the island to uplift the health facilities of the civilians liberated from the terrorists. Read more ...

2,000 more acres cleared of mines in Mannar of Northwestern Sri Lanka

About 2,000 acres of paddy fields in Yodha Wewa area in the Mannar District have been cleared from mines by the Sri Lanka Army.

The Army said that the farmers would now be able to commence cultivations in these lands for the next season.

Army said that measures have been taken to cultivate about 2,000 acres of paddy fields in Jaffna peninsula as well. Read more ...

SRI LANKA: Government to release IDPs to relatives

Internally displaced persons (IDPs) in camps in Sri Lanka’s north will be released to their relatives, and the government expects the majority to be resettled by early next year, says a minister.

Sri Lanka’s Minister of Resettlement and Disaster Relief Services, Rishad Bathiudeen, told IRIN on 10 September that President Mahinda Rajapaksa had made the decision to allow the IDPs to live with their relatives, with effect from this week.

Bathiudeen said the government could not say how many people would be released, but that it would consider all applications from relatives outside the camps.

“If the application comes, we will attend to it,” said Bathiudeen. Read more ..

Official Government Announcement

Sri Lanka imports machines to clear mines

Sri Lanka has imported equipment to speed up mine clearing in the former war zone in the island's north, the defence ministry said on Saturday.

The mine-clearing machines imported from Slovakia would be used to accelerate resettlement of people driven out of the area during the height of fighting, the ministry said in a statement.

Sri Lanka's army and eight other organisations were involved in removing thousands of mines, but most of the work was done manually, K. Kumarasiri, secretary to the Nation Building Ministry, told AFP.

"Only 10 square metres (about 100 square feet) can be de-mined daily (by one mine clearer) through manual work," added Major General D.M.D. Alwis, coordinator of the Sri Lanka Humanitarian Demining Project.

"But these machines can clear 5,000 square metres," he said. Read more ...

Photo Caption: Five Bozena Flail machines costing Sri Lanka Rs. 250m bought from Slovakia to remove land mines buried in the North and East arrived in the island on a special Chinese Airways airline yesterday. They were handed over to the Sri Lanka Army at the Airport by Ministers Sarath Gunaratne and Rishard Bathiudeen. Picture by Saman Sri Wedage. Source: Daily News

Former LTTE child soldiers given overseas visas in Sri Lanka

A group of former LTTE child soldiers, who have undergone rehabilitation and vocational training after laying down arms, were presented with overseas work visas by Sri Lankan authorities at a ceremony held at a temple here.

Amidst chanting of religious hymns, seven young ex- LTTE cadres, in their late teens or early 20's, accepted the work permits and documents for Malaysia and received blessings from the temple priest ahead of a new beginning in their lives. Attired in jeans and sporting neat hair-cuts, the former rebels were watched by the other devotees with interest at the Vinayagar Tamil temple yesterday. Read more ...

Sri Lankan government to provide more facilities to the fishing industry in the North

Sri Lankan government has taken extensive measures to promote the fishing industry in the North to uplift the lives of the fisher community in the former war-torn areas.

Under the Uthuru Wasanthaya development programs of the North, the government plans to restart the ice production plant and the canned fish production factory at Pesalai in Mannar. Read more ...

Sri Lanka to send older IDPs to elderly homes

Sri Lankan government is making arrangements to setup elderly homes to resettle the older Internally Displaced Persons now housed in the welfare camps.

According to the Ministry of Resettlement and Relief Services over 550 senior citizens living in welfare camps in Vavuniya will be sent to Elders' Homes in Mannar and Vavuniya at their wish. Read more ...

Sri Lanka Will Resettle 50,000 Tamil War Refugees in Two Weeks

Sri Lanka said it will resettle 50,000 mostly Tamil refugees within two weeks as the international community presses for their release from camps where they have been held since the civil war ended in May.

The refugees will return to their homes, including in Kilinochchi, the former headquarters of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, and Mullaitivu, where Tamil Tiger forces made their last stand, the government said.

The U.S. is leading calls for the swift return of more than 280,000 refugees to their homes. The U.K.’s opposition Conservative Party said yesterday they have spent 100 days in camps since the war ended and called on Sri Lanka to allow “full and unrestricted access” by United Nations workers and aid groups to the centers. Read more ...

Island-wide census after 30 years

The Department of Census and Statistics is to conduct the first island-wide population and housing census after thirty years: the last survey done 10 years ago did not include the then LTTE dominated areas.

"The initial work pertaining to the mapping of housing units and collecting data of persons living within a domestic unit has been commenced at the Grama Niladhari Divisional level," said Director General of the Department of Census and Statistics, D.B.P.S. Vidyaratne.

The survey is scheduled to be completed by 2011, he said.

The Department seeks public assistance and cooperation to make the census accurate.

A census of Population and Housing is an official count of the population in Sri Lanka and the number of dwellings. It is the only such data source in the country. Read more ...

Govt. says it has a million mouths to feed in IDP camps

Rejecting allegations that internally displaced Northern Tamils, were suffering in refugee camps, the government said yesterday that it has to feed a million mouths each day.

Export Development and International Trade Minister G. L. Peiris, asked about Opposition allegations that 280,000 IDP’s had to put up with inhuman conditions, said that it was easy to criticize, but the government was doing a tough job under trying circumstances.

"We are willing to rectify any wrongs, but it must be remembered that a huge effort is being put in, to make the IDP’s comfortable. Nearly a million mouths have to be fed each day."

Media Minister Anura Priyadharshana Yapa, when referred to IDP requests that they be permitted to live with their relations in Sri Lanka or go abroad, said that such stories were being spread by opportunistic Opposition politicians.

"As a government, we are doing our best. Some of the IDP’s have already been resettled." Read more ...

Rain affected IDPs reduced to mere 500

At the commencement of the North-East monsoonal rains last week, almost 21,000 IDPs in the Vavuniya Welfare Centres were badly affected but due to emergency relief operations carried by the authorities those affected have been reduced to a mere 500 at present, Vavuniya District Secretary Ms P. M. S. Charles said.

Due to the sudden downpour last week some welfare centres got flooded but most of the affected have been shifted to new camps put up at higher elevations and they have been supplied with cooked meals, the District Secretary further said.

IDPs at welfare centres at zone 4 were worst affected due to the flooding. Toilet pits were washed away due to the floods but a proper drainage system has been put in place now and the problem solved, she said. Read more ...

Related story

Over 15,000 IDP families to be resettled

The Government yesterday said over 15,000 IDP families from the Jaffna district will be resettled in their original homes soon.

According to Resettlement and Relief Services Minister Rishad Badiudeen, the authorities have already identified over 15,000 displaced families who claim themselves to be the residents of Jaffna and their details have been forwarded to the authorities in the Jaffna district.

These families are now living in welfare centres in the Vavuniya and Mannar districts.

"We have already sent the details of over 15,000 families to the Police , Jaffna Government Agent and respective Divisional Secretariats to ascertain whether they are permanent residents in the Jaffna district".

The Minister stressed that they would be resettled in their original homes in the Jaffna district after the Government officials gave an assurance that they are permanent residents of the Jaffna district.

“The Presidential Task Force on Northern Development under the chairmanship of Senior Presidential Advisor MP Basil Rajapaksa is working tirelessly to expedite the demining process to facilitate the resettlement drive and it is committed to resettled as much displaced civilians as possible within the time frame of 180 days, the Minister said. Read more ...

All Experiences Are Subjective

All experiences are subjective. And so I realized when nine of us visited some of the IDP camps last week and found that each of us had different feelings and observations about the experience. Perhaps this is because every experience is viewed through the prism of our personalities, value systems, cultural and educational orientations as well as our own life experiences. This may also be the reason why there are such diametrically opposing views expressed about the conditions in the IDP camps, for while some feel that the refugees are very well looked after, others feel that their conditions are dismal. All that I will attempt to do here is to describe my own observations, thoughts and feelings during my visit to the IDP camps.

I was one of five lay people of different religions and faiths, who joined a group of Catholic nuns on a mission of mercy. Like many others in the South belonging to every religion and denomination, these nuns had been hard at work gathering clothes, food items and other essential in order to ease the suffering of the displaced people in the North. On this occasion however, they were working in conjunction with a group of young school leavers to provide 1,300 families at Sumathipuram camp with what were referred to as "friendship packages". Since the government was supplying the camps with basic food items, each of these packages consisted of a bucket, a sarong, a dress, several pairs of slippers, siddhalepa, condiments, soaps, a towel, sanitary towels and toothpaste for each family. Some of the items in the package would have been used up in a week and would have barely scratched the surface of their needs. Still, as they say, something is better than nothing and even this something cost a tidy sum! Read the full story ...

Jaffna-Colombo bus service via A-9 in operation

Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) has commenced a limited bus service between Jaffna and Colombo via the A-9, Jaffna-Kandy main highway, the Governor of the Northern Province, Major General G.A. Chandrasiri announced.

Commencing the service, four buses, carrying 175 passengers to Medawachchiya, left Jaffna yesterday (01.08.09). The SLTB has provided additional transportation to the passengers from Medawachchiya to Colombo. Another group of 200 passengers is to arrive in Colombo today. Read more ...

Massive inoculation programme for children at IDP centres Over 40,000 IDPs below five years

A recent survey conducted by the Health Ministry has found that there are over 40,000 children below age of five in the welfare camps in Vavuniya.

These children had not been immunised properly unlike their counterparts elsewhere, Health Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva told The Island.

Instructions and orders had been issued on Public Health Officers to vaccinate children at IDP centres against measles and polio as part of a special ‘child health campaign’ carried out from today to Wednesday (05).

The Ministry of Health, UNICEF, WHO and a coalition of other partners are responsible for the immunisation campaign whose aim is to counter sporadic outbreaks of measles.

The campaign will target all children below five years. Nearly 140 midwives and 1,200 volunteers will participate in the campaign at 30 centres in Vavuniya. This follows several weeks of preparations. Read more ...

Fishermen Scoop Up Sri Lanka’s Peace Dividend

It was just after dawn and the fish market beneath this port city’s clock tower was humming. Fishermen shouldering baskets laden with the night’s catch tipped their Spanish mackerel, tuna and prawns onto the slick concrete floor for buyers. Sweaty men with clipboards and wads of cash leaned in close to inspect with crinkled noses, squinting eyes and prodding fingers.

“I’ll take this for 500 rupees a kilo,” nearly $5, one buyer said to an expectant fisherman, waving his chin in the direction of a large, glistening yellowfin tuna. “Can you get me more?”

Fishermen here certainly hope so. The end of the brutal 26-year war against the Tamil Tiger insurgency in Sri Lanka prompted the government to ease fishing restrictions on Trincomalee’s harbor, breathing new life into the region’s moribund fishing industry. Boats once moldering on shore now go on all-night runs for tuna, squid and lobster. Ghostly markets are coming back to life. Read more ...