Sri Lanka has been at war for nearly thirty years, a conflict that arose between the country’s government and the country’s Tamil minority. This month marks a likely end to the conflict, following what Sri Lanka’s government is calling a victory–the death of the Tamil Tigers leader, Vellupillai Prabhakaran, and his senior officers. However, the issues of the Tamil people will still need to be addressed–especially the masses of Tamil people who have been displaced from the conflict.
The government says that it will find homes for these 280,000 displaced people within six months; the delay, they say, is because Tamil Tiger rebels have to be found before people can return to their homes.
Humanitarian aid groups, on the other hand, say that the government seems willing to hold the displaced Tamil people indefinitely, and that they are being heavily restricted from distributing aid. These groups have been begging for better access to these “welfare villages,” the term used by the government.
Tamil Tigers call these areas “concentration camps.”
While their may be truth to both sides, it is certain that safety needs to come first, and the area landmines must be located and cleared before resettlement can happen.
The Tamil Tigers have agreed to lay down their weapons, and Sri Lanka has declared a victory… but at what price? We can all hope that Sri Lanka will look at the Tamil people as people, and help them re-establish their lives following this lengthy ordeal–as well as treat them as citizens with legitimate concerns that do need to be addressed.
Tags: humanitarian aid, land mines, peace, sri lanka, tamil, tamil tigers, vellupillari prabhakaran