Mass hunger strike

By Our Jaffna Correspondent-2013-02-03 More than 20,000 Northern civilians who have no access to their lands from the North will launch a mass hunger strike on 15 February to highlight their grievances. The mass hunger strike is to be held at the Tellipalali Durga Devi temple premises calling for the withdrawal of the Security Forces from lands owned by the civilians prior to the escalation of the war. A special meeting in this regard was held at the Valikamam North Pradeshiya Sabha premises on Friday (1), where civilians who still live in Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps in the peninsula, with no access to their homes and agricultural lands complained that their houses have been demolished and their agricultural lands have been acquired by the Security Forces. They also said their means of livelihood have been badly affected and they are presently facing the danger of losing their own properties to the Security Forces. Friday’s meeting was attended by the TNA Parliamentarians S. Sritharan and E. Saravanapawan. Civilians who were affected when they were evicted from their original places of residence, consequent to the escalation of the war still live in a pathetic state, though their comfortable homes and fertile lands, have now been encroached upon by the Security Forces, MP S. Sritharan said. Several hundreds of acres of land belonging to those who had been evicted when the war was in progress have been used by the Army in Palaly for agricultural purposes, the civilians alleged. Most of the houses have been demolished and agricultural lands have been acquired by the Security Forces in the Valikamam North area, sources alleged. A new fence, which goes through the Myliddy area that was erected by the Security Forces in the early part of last year, has prevented the IDPs from going to their homes and lands. In the recent past, the houses that had been well constructed, and were within the newly erected fence have been bulldozed, sources said. A similar protest, staged by civilians who had been affected, and held at the same venue last year, had been dispersed by the Security Forces, sources added.

2013-02-03