On
the A9
By
Sonali Siriwardena ![](../images/plus5.jpg)
The A9 highway is today the most talked of road in the country.
Although it is still far from becoming the most travelled, it has
been attracting a growing number of commuters, since it was opened
for civilian travel following the signing of the MOU between the
Government and the LTTE last month.
For some, this
route finally provides an affordable opportunity to visit relatives
living in the North, for others it opens a path to assess for themselves
the devastation that almost two decades of war has left behind.
Attorney-at-Law
Nimalka Fernando made the trip to Jaffna along the A9 route last
month. "As a peace activist, I welcomed the MOU between the
government and the LTTE and promised the Women's Development Centre
in Jaffna that I would spend the Sinhala and Tamil New Year with
them, if the A9 was re-opened," she said.
Having been
to Jaffna during the late 1970s and '80s, she was eager to revisit
the peninsula. "Although we have demarcated and seemingly separated
our lands, it is still one Sri Lanka. And it was in that spirit
that we chose to go."
"The first
thing one encounters of course, are the checkpoints. Initially we
visited the LTTE head office checkpoint at Vavuniya because there
was talk of the need to get their prior permission to travel north
but they were very cordial to us and said there was no permission
needed. We even gave them some sweetmeats we had brought with us.
The Army was equally warm. Of course, the fact that we had a former
MP Vasudeva Nanayakkara travelling with us may have contributed
to this, for we did see huge throngs of people being compelled to
queue up at the checkpoint in Omanthai," she said.
Ms. Fernando
explains that after the Army checkpoint in Omanthai, one encounters
two ICRC camps situated within a few yards of each other, one on
the side of the Army camp and the other next to that of the LTTE.
Travellers are required to unload all their baggage and walk these
few yards between the two ICRC camps. If you are travelling in a
private vehicle, it is then checked and permitted to pass but if
you travel by bus, from that point you are transported to Muhamalai
by the LTTE.
"So you
could see poor people pushing barrels and elderly women laden with
bags and suitcases making their way between the two ICRC camps.
And from Muhamalai, people travelling by road, board government
buses which ply to Jaffna."
The road runs
along mostly jungle. Long stretches have yellow tape indicating
landmine infested areas. "If you have travelled this route
earlier you find that the contrast today is striking. There is devastation
everywhere. In Kilinochchi except for a few buildings, everything
else has collapsed. The Kilinochchi Central School is literally
roofless but you still find children having their lessons among
the rubble. Right along you find that nothing has been spared because
every house along the road is bullet riddled and damaged."
"It was
to me a devastating experience to realize we have allowed our own
country to be destroyed like this. And it is apparent that the LTTE
alone has not inflicted all the damage because the Army too has
obviously made their contribution," she said.
Also clearly
noticed as they travelled from Kilinochchi to Chavakachcheri town,
was that most of the tall palmyrah and coconut trees lining the
roads are just stumps, bare of any branches due to heavy shelling
in the area.
Off Kilinochchi
the group visited an orphanage housing over 600 children between
6-17 months. "It was to this orphanage that the rebels brought
little children who were found among the rubble etc. after crossfire
or bombing. Having been a teacher myself, I immediately noticed
that these children were quite unlike a group of average toddlers.
When told they had visitors, they quietly lined up in a manner that
obviously indicated that although they were physically unharmed,
their experiences had left severe psychological scars," she
explained. "When we were young we interacted with our Tamil
friends in school and university but the war has today stifled any
opportunity for this sort of interaction. If we are to bridge the
gap between the Sinhalese and Tamils, we must encourage interaction
among our children," she said.
Along the main
road from Chavakachcheri to Jafnna town, said Ms. Fernando, there
were no homes to be seen, only broken chairs, tables and dilapidated
government buildings swamped by overgrown shrubs and bushes. "You
encounter a heavy Army presence in Jaffna town. The town itself
is bustling but if you were to take a walk, everyone you meet has
a story to tell. There are unannounced six-hour power cuts and uninterrupted
electricity is only assured between 10.30 p.m. to 6.30 a.m. But
people have got used to these things, which seem so irksome to us
living in Colombo. They know there is nothing they can do about
it."
They also met
with the Mothers' Front in Jaffna, who said that the government
has now accepted that over 150 out of 400 'disappeared' persons
cannot be located. These mothers insist that they do not want the
compensation. They just want to find out what happened to their
boys. And because of the disappearances which are now commonplace,
Jaffna town is virtually deserted after 7 p.m.
But the silver
lining is that agriculture seems to be flourishing in the peninsula
with many farmers returning to their fields to resume cultivation.
"There
are a few makeshift tea stalls put up near the Pulliankulam LTTE
checkpoint where we saw farmers sipping toddy and having a smoke.
This was one distinct feature that indicated that things can indeed
get back to the way they used to be," Ms. Fernando said.
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