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Living
under a cloud of fear In the past few weeks, thousands of people in Trincomalee, Sampur and Gomarankadawala have been forced to flee their homes and seek refuge in temples and schools. Humanitarian agencies working in these affected areas have pointed out that many people have been displaced and are languishing in refugee camps with little care and protection. They say children are the most affected with their education coming to a halt with most schools remaining closed due to the volatile situation. Trincomalee Additional GA W.A.S.B Amaratunga said that the number of families who fled their homes as a result of aerial bombings by the Government in Sampur in Trincomalee after Tuesday’s suicide attack, stands at 4474 and denied the initial reports by some parties that 40,000 families had been displaced. He also said 4284 families in the Trincomalee district had fled their homes after the violent incidents broke out following the bomb blast at the Trinco town market. He said the displaced people have been accommodated in 22 refugee camps. He also said the incident in Gomarankadawala last Sunday where six villagers were gunned down reportedly by the LTTE forced more people to seek refuge in camps He said, starting yesterday, the government will be doling out dry rations to affected families for one week through co-operatives and will continue doing so if the need arises. Mr. Amaratunga said several NGOs were also distributing dry rations and providing medical facilities to the displaced. The UNHCR in a statement had said the camps lacked facilities to cope with the sudden influx of people. However, Mr. Amaratunga said the government and humanitarian agencies are working together to ensure that basic needs are met and issues such as overcrowding are addressed. The UNHCR also said that around 7000-8000 people had been displaced as a direct result of the Sampur aerial bombardment following Tuesday’s blast in Colombo while another 8,500 people had been displaced following earlier incidents. The statement also said that some people have started fleeing to India and that the total number of arrivals of Sri Lankan refugees in Tamil Nadu, since January 12 stood at 596 . Reporting on the more recent Sri Lankan refugees arriving in Tamil Nadu, the UNHCR said refugees began arriving again on 22 April. “As a result of the latest security incidents in Sri Lanka, 16 people have landed on the shores of Southern India since then,” the statement said. SLMM spokesperson Helen Olaffsdottir said the fear and uncertainty among civilians after the attacks have gradually eased in the past few days. She said displaced people in the Trincomalee district have been temporarily sheltered mainly in temples, schools and public buildings. She added that many people, living in coastal areas hadn’t still gone back to their homes. Meanwhile some NGOs claimed that civilians who were caught in the fighting between the government and the LTTE are not receiving even basic humanitarian assistance. They alleged that people who have sought refuge in camps in areas such as Muttur and Kinniya in the Trincomalee district hadn’t received assistance from the government for days and that people had to depend on other villagers for assistance. They also noted that authorities instead of arguing about the actual number of people who have been displaced as a result of the recent volatile situation should concentrate on providing humanitarian assistance to them. |
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