SRI LANKA: Community rebirth in war-torn Mullaitivu

30 Sep 2011

30 Sep 2011 13:33

Source: Member // MAG (Mines Advisory Group)

Suresh is looking forward to helping his grandmother rebuild her home in Suthanthipuram village. [Photo: MAG Sri Lanka]

Suresh lost his right arm during the civil war. Both his parents and his sister were killed. But, despite his tragic misfortunes, the 12-year-old has an incredibly positive outlook.

Suresh was one of 2,140 internally displaced people (IDPs) who returned to Suthanthipuram village in June, after MAG released previously inaccessible land that had been contaminated with 69 anti-personnel landmines and 15 items ofunexploded ordnance (UXO). He told us he now hopes to study hard and get a good job to support his grandmother when he gets older.

“I am very happy to leave the IDP camp and go back home with my grandmother,” he said. “I can’t wait to go back to school and help my grandmother to rebuild our house.”

Suthanthipuram is located in the north-eastern corner of Mullaitivu District, in Puthukudiyiruppu Division – the final stronghold of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and where the last stages of the conflict took place in May 2009.

Many of the 638 families who fled the fighting had been living in camps for two years and were coming back home for the first time.

As well as enabling a safe return to their houses, our work also meant that 600 wells, two schools, a hospital, five water tanks for irrigation purposes, five square kilometres of agricultural land and 20 small business premises were all available for the community.

One shop that is fully stocked and operational is the local co-operative. Run by the Government, these co-operatives play a crucial role in the immediate stages after resettlement, with community members given stamps to collect essential food items.

“We have now opened up our co-operative after MAG cleared the area,” said Sales Manager Jusuthas Jude. “And 170 families will benefit from this shop, so we are very thankful to MAG.”

A further 3,693 IDPs were able to resettle in Thevipuram and Vallipunam – two other towns in Puthukudiyiruppu – during the month of June.

Our Community Liaison staff provided safety briefings to all three returning communities, informing returnees of the location of hazardous areas, and what steps to take if they uncover landmines or UXO.

MAG thanks the following donors to its Sri Lanka programme: AusAID; Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA); The Kirby Laing Foundation; NVESD; Stichting Vluchteling; US Department of State’s Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement.