The North East monsoon seems to be a major preoccupation of diplomatic visitors to Sri Lanka's IDP camps in the North of late. Every envoy that stepped into Menik Farm since the end of September has dutifully voiced concern about the disaster that looms on account of "flooding caused by heavy rains" they are certain will occur in the camps when the monsoon arrives.
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| Menik Farm in Vavuniya |
Britain's Development Minister Mike Foster has determined that "heavy rainfall could cause devastation - polluting water and sanitation supplies and spreading disease." Such is his concern that he has agreed to continue with funding for IDP assistance until the "critical monsoon season" is over. Unfortunately his generosity does not flow as readily as the imagined monsoon torrent, as he made it clear the funds will cease after that point.
Not to be outdone, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband also waxed eloquent about tropical weather patterns. Addressing fellow parliamentarians and expressing his firm conviction of an impending humanitarian crisis he declared that "Unusually heavy rains during August demonstrated that the camps are ill equipped for sustained heavy rains expected from mid October to December, during the monsoon season." Strangely, Sri Lanka's Met Department was unaware of any such "heavy rains during August" in those areas. But no matter. Who could possibly know, in the British House of Commons, whether the rain in Sri Lanka stayed mainly in the plain, or whether it was a figment of Mr. Miliband's imagination?
In spite of Britain having been former colonial overlord in the Indian subcontinent, its present-day representatives don't seem to have learned that the monsoon, like so many other things in this part of the world, has a habit of not always happening on schedule. If it is in a particularly capricious mood, it may even decide not to show up at all (in defiance of Mr. Miliband's decree that it must, and wreak havoc in the camps).
Listening to the dire warnings that have emanated from these visitors, one would think the monsoon was a typhoon. Or a tsunami. If anything is causing hardship to the people of Vavunia it is the severe drought being experienced in the region right now. Even at the best of times, the rainfall in this region is not much, and when it does come, it is a blessing. A million farmers there anxiously await the monsoon rains, the failure of which would result in ruined crops, and serious difficulties that would follow.
If there is some flooding in low lying areas within Menik Farm in the days to come, authorities say they are prepared for it, having dug enough drains. The army is also ready with a quick evacuation plan. It was not so long ago that Sri Lanka coped with a tsunami, which left more than half a million people displaced. In the face of incredible odds, the health sector braced up and dealt with that emergency, ensuring that there was no outbreak of communicable disease in the camps.
Though Menik Farm was planned in a hurry, the site was picked on the basis of its location, which allows Mahaweli waters to be diverted to the Malwatu Oya in order to ensure an adequate water supply. While everything may not be perfect in the Northern IDP camps, there is a strenuous effort on the part of state authorities to improve the situation. Yet hearing the statements from some quarters overseas one would think the government is wilfully prolonging the confinement of these people in camps (at great trouble and expense to itself) in order to inflict some sinister collective punishment on them. The sight of a barbed wire fence - such a common sight anywhere in Sri Lanka - has been enough to raise the cry of "Auschwitz!" and "Belsen!"
In spite of Mr. Miliband's and Mr. Foster's certainty about an impending humanitarian crisis, it may not happen. But no matter. Their speeches and actions will please the thousands of Eelam-flag waving, drum-beating Tamils who disrupted London traffic for weeks on end with boisterous demos outside the UK Parliament, demanding that Britain punish Sri Lanka.
No matter either that these antics cost the British taxpayer nearly eight million pounds spent by the police. After all, sizeable contributions roll in from wealthy members of the Tamil diaspora, to the election campaigns of those who pander to their demands. Sadly, it is the 200,000 odd IDPs now left in camps in Northern Sri Lanka who may bear the brunt of British aid being withheld. At the end of the day, a bloc of hundreds of thousands of ethnic Tamil votes in Britain is the prize that really matters, isn't it? |
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