My experiences in Jaffna-Summer 2007
December 13th, 2007
by Dr.Dan Muthuveloe
I would like to share with you my experiences of Jaffna from a Tamil point of view. I am sure what I have to say could be matched by equally harrowing stories from other parts of North and East such as the Vanni, Mannar, Sampoor, Vaharai etc, and perhaps from the South by Sinhalese and Muslims who have also suffered pain and loss.
During the three months I spent in Jaffna recently, I met with many ordinary people. Many of them related to me their harrowing experiences and tales, which made me listen to them spell bound, speechless with no words of comfort or encouragement to give in return. I could only sigh. I was amazed at the capacity of people to cope with tremendous anxiety, fear, deprivation and the dehumanising infringement of their right to the pursuit of happiness and a quiet life.
After my return from Jaffna I have been pondering about the dire situation I left behind. I vowed to return. Not because I am able to do something for them, but purely because I wanted to be there and be with them and feel the fear and anxiety and humiliation they feel day in and day out. They have no advocate. They have no political voice.
There were days when I could not eat. Not because the food was not palatable. On the contrary the food was delicious as only the Jaffna cuisine could be. I had no appetite after hearing sad story after story of pain from crushed hearts.
Killings and abductions occurred daily. I have seen dead bodies by the road side. They were mostly young men who have been shot and killed. It is usually reported the next day in the Uthayan News paper that persons of unknown identity are thought to have been the killers. Friends and neighbours are scared to befriend the bereaved family for fear of their lives in case they also become victims of the killers. I was told that the victims were young men who were active politically, either when in University or as journalists or as activists during ‘Pongu Thamil’ celebrations and other political demonstrations. The killings did not appear to be random but targeted. Many of the abducted are given up for dead because so few of them return alive. The killings of these young men have left a growing number of young widows and fatherless children. The ‘recent’ widows number over a thousand. Last month alone 57 men were killed in the Jaffna peninsula. Wives and mothers are anxious each morning when their husbands and children leave home until they return in the evening.
The sound of gunfire, shells and aerial bombing can be heard daily. It is not only a constant reminder of the ongoing conflict but causes our hearts to sink. The children are petrified. Some shake with fear. Scattered through out the main trunk roads are sentry points where one is checked for identity cards. If you are riding a motorcycle or scooter, the army may take your bike from you for their use. You will be very thankful when the bike is returned without damage.
Cordon and search operations occur at any time of day or night. The trunk roads [Palaly Road, KKS Road, Pt.Pedro Road and the A9] are closed to civilian traffic twice a day for three to four hours. While I was there the nightly curfew was from 7 pm to 4 am. People are at home by 6 pm and do not venture out. Killings, abductions and robberies take place under cover of the curfew.
The people in Jaffna have no dignity or self worth or confidence as evidenced by the cringing posture and body language and the gibbering apology for their existence when stopped by the army.
The A 9 the only road to the rest of the country has been closed for over a year. This has caused great hardship to the people. Food and essential items have to be shipped to the peninsula. While I did not see starvation I certainly saw malnutrition and failure to thrive and growth retardation in young children.
Cement was four times the price in Colombo. There is hardly any construction work going on in Jaffna.
The declaration of High Security Zones by the army has resulted in several communities being evacuated from their homes and villages. They have been languishing in temporary housing for the last 14 years. They are referred to as I.D.Ps-Internally Displaced People. They are the forgotten people of this prolonged conflict.
The people in Jaffna are indeed subjugated and held captive in what amounts to an open prison. They cannot leave the peninsula unless they have an exit permit from the Grama Sevaka and the Army. Hundreds could be seen at the different army camps trying to obtain their permits to get to Colombo to find a new life.
The population of Jaffna in 1981 was 800 thousand people. Today it has drastically dwindled to 250 thousand persons and the numbers are continuing to haemorrhage. The number of army personnel in Jaffna is 60 thousand. Hence for every four civilian persons in Jaffna, there is an armed soldier with an automatic gun or machine gun.
The recurrent heartfelt cry that I heard in Jaffna was the sense of hopelessness and the feeling of desolation. Hopelessness because the people of Jaffna had put hope in their politicians through the democratic process. They had hoped in the freedom struggle through the efforts of the ‘boys’-the freedom fighters to some but terrorists to others. They had hoped in every new Prime Minister and President for an equitable solution for all time. They had hoped in the IPKF. They had hoped in the CFA. They had hoped the Norwegians would broker a deal for all time. The International community, the United Nations, the European Union and the Co-Chairs have not done enough to stop the genocide.
I could sense a feeling of desolation, a feeling of being abandoned and lonely and forlorn without friends. A feeling of utter hopelessness filled my heart as well. We have put our trust in men and horses and chariots with no avail. Our hopes have been dashed time and again. We as Tamils and as Sri Lankans as peace loving people have stood back in horror, feeling utterly helpless and alienated.
Our Response
A call to Prayer and Intercession-for Peace with Justice and Reconciliation
In recent weeks a few of us in England have been particularly inspired to pray and ask God for his intervention in this hopeless situation. God can intervene and can roll back the tide of violence and restore justice, peace and serenity in the land of our birth. We can hope and trust God in desperate times. We can pray for Peace with Justice and for Reconciliation between the peoples in Sri Lanka.
You and I may not have harmed any one but in our name, violent words have been spoken and atrocious deeds have been done causing pain, death and suffering. We need to repent and ask God’s forgiveness for the crimes committed in our name. May God forgive our leaders and us.
The book of 2 Chronicles 7:14 says, ‘if my people, called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways; then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their landĀ’.
God will heal our hurts and pain. God will restore our broken spirit.
God will change our hard hearts to compassionate and considerate ones. God will grant us the courage to accept each other and value each other.
God will help us to forgive and to receive forgiveness.
God will restore righteousness in our land.
So that we will not feel alienated any more. So that we could feel equal with one and all, and justly be proud of, and share in our common heritage.
In the famous poem Morte d’ Arthur, Lord Tennyson wrote:
‘More things are wrought by prayer
Than this world dreams of. Wherefore let thy voice
Rise like a fountain for me night and day
For what are men better than sheep or goats
That nourish a blind life within the brain,
If, knowing God, they lift not hands of prayer
Both for themselves and those who call them friend?’
So dear friend, should we not therefore as exhorted by Tennyson PRAY
for ourselves and our people. We invite you to join the Call to Prayer and pray with us for a speedy resolution to the conflict and for Peace with Justice and Reconciliation
May we suggest the following for you to consider?
1] Set apart a time of day or a day in the week for Special Prayers.
2] Use the following as prayer points
3] Enlist your family and friends to join in prayer
4 ]Pray with a prayer partner or group
5] Speak to others about the dire situation the need for urgent prayer.
Please do remember to pray as often as your busy life will allow. It does not matter what faith you are, Christian, Hindu, Muslim or Buddhist. Praying for the situation in Sri Lanka is the least we can do and it is also the best we can do.
1] Pray for the cessation of hostilities.
Pray for Peace diplomats.
Pray for the defusing of anger and revenge.
2] Pray for the return of the sanctity of life.
Pray that killings and abductions will cease.
Pray that there will be no need for any more violent deaths
3] Pray for the return of civil rule and democracy.
Pray for the return of dialogue.
Pray for tolerance and respect of other points of view.
Pray for the spirit of generosity, to live and let live
4] Pray for Just Peace.
Pray that fear and apprehension and anxiety will be no more.
Pray for the Liberty and the Freedoms of each person in equal measure.
5] Pray for ALL aid workers, politicians and journalists.
Pray for their safety.
Pray for their important work.
6] Pray for ALL war widows and their dependants
Pray for ALL orphans.
Pray for ALL the war disabled and maimed
7] Pray for ALL Refugees- Internally Displaced People
If you share with us the need and importance of this Call to Prayer and wish to join us in doing so, please e mail one of us with your nod and feed back, views and suggestions if any.
Your Response?
1] Write to us if you will join us in prayer.
2] Give us your thoughts and suggestions.
3] Circulate this to like-minded persons for prayer
Arul Selvaratnam-selvaratnam@mail.com
Lawrence Ratnam-LRatnam@aol.com
Dan Muthuveloe- danmuthuveloe@hadenvale.org
Sam Muthuveloe-sam.muthuveloe@hopeoutreach.org.uk
If the uptake is good we may produce a monthly prayer-net bulletin to help us keep in touch and to encourage each other to continue praying.
Dr Dan Muthuveloe
Stourbridge
West Midlands
UK
danmuthuveloe@hadenvale.org
1st Dec 2007
Entry Filed under: transCurrents
15 Comments Add your own
1. j.veera | December 14th, 2007 at 7:19 pm
God bless all tamil people from thamil ealm, They will be libearted soon. Pray for that day. god bless you all
2. Kumar | December 14th, 2007 at 8:45 pm
Reading Dan’s stroy, one would think the SL Army is a bunch psychos intimidating an innocent bunch of civilians for no apparent reason. What has been left unsaid is that the SL Army is in Jaffna to protect the soverignity of Sri Lanka and its people, which includes Tamils.
If not for the SL Army, the same Tamils would be terrorised by the LTTE, killing, extorting and recruiting children and women for suicide missions. How come this side of the stroy which is the cause of the present situation been left unsaid ?
One can pray to god as long and hard as one wishes, but as long as the Tamil diaspora continue to fund the Tamil Terrorists and fail to identify the fact that it is the LTTE that is causing the greatest destruction ever of the Tamil race, the Tamils in Northern Sri Lanka will continue to suffer.
Those Tamils who are lucky enough to be able to get away from the LTTE and move to the South of Sri Lanka to live and work amongst the Singhala people will live in peace and happiness – and here in lies the biggest irony of this conflict.
3. geico | December 14th, 2007 at 9:56 pm
once terrorisme is gone from this country,it will be all over,just be pation for a while, you all be all right
4. Nishantha | December 14th, 2007 at 10:34 pm
It is sad that some of us in the South are eqaully helpless in doing anything other than silently pray for the victims and sympathise with them. Talking on behalf of peace is not something that is entertained here. War mongers have succeeded beating their war drums. We do our part in small circles but are unable to cry out in public. Those cries are not heard.
Could you provide a facility for us to circulate this through e-mail to friends?
5. Sandman | December 15th, 2007 at 12:48 am
Heart-wrenching words, but nover addressing the true issues that are the true cause of the effects described herein. Sri Lanka was a peaceful nation until racist terrorism began in the 1980’s aspiring for violent gain over a nation unprepared for war.
Those who sow the seeds of war reap war, and on both sides people are suffering. The war will stop the day the prayers come true and show the tamil people the way to peaceful co-existance with the majority. Until then the bleeding will continue.
6. A.Rajasingam | December 15th, 2007 at 12:55 am
More harrowing tales are yet to come but will not been realized by both the government and the LTTE at the moment. The government and the LTTE are concerned of their superiority at the expense of the innocent people. None of them are worried of the hardships caused to the innocent civilians. Both the government and the LTTE are instrumental for spreading this gun culture because people are drifted to the extent of either joining with the government or with the LTTE. On the one hand there is an endless harassment and torture caused by the Armed Security while on the other hand the people are terrorized by the LTTE with death threats if they furnish information to the Security forces. As the government has a moral obligation to look after its people at this crucial stage, the government can look into other alternatives disregarding all militant and/or terrorist groups. The people from the South should also denounce the rising of extremists in all parts of the country. The LTTE was also the cause of this problem when it had adopted a systematic and calculated act of decimating all the educated people. Simultaneously the government is also not sincere even with India. The sending away of the IPKF by both Premadasa and the LTTE eventually saw a bleeding Sri Lanka which demonstrates the necessity of the presence of moderates in the political scene. One thing is clear – that is either a Mediator comes into the scene or if it prolongs the government may designate certain areas in the North and East are designated as red, orange and green areas and when such red areas are bombed like in Malaysia in the 1950s, it would be too late to cry that human rights are violated. Even the international community would remain silent.
7. Joseph C. | December 15th, 2007 at 4:52 am
Well said Dr.Don. Looking the problem in a bigger picture. From a Christian point of view you are calling men and women of good will to pray for Sri Lanka. During world war II the catholics were praying to our Lady, Mother of Jesus to save Ceylon and miracle happened. Then Ceylon was dedicated to our Lady of Lanka. Catholics have been praying in English, Tamil and Sinhala to our Lady of Lanka to save Sri Lanka from all kinds of violence from the first day of civil war. There is always a question within me seeking to find the answer. It is, why is it in a country where Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Christianity are practised still hatred and enmity are the religion of many? Whose mistake is this? Who has to be blamed? Political policy makers or the politicians themselves? Or the intellectuals and religious leaders who knowingly or unknowingly allow this to happen? Is there any leader within the two main political parties who has the courage to acknowledge the wrong doings done to the Tamils and call for reconciliation, reconstruction and development? Apart from this what is the role of the media in Sri Lanka? specially the Sinhala media. Do they act responsibly bringing to the Sinhala masses the real situation of North and East or do they hide everything under the carpet of terrorism. How many negotiations during the last 6 decades between the government in power and Tamil minority parties and at the end nothing happened. Do the minorities in Sri Lanka have a say in decision making? The government does not have a political will to solve the problem only personal will to solve their own problem. Does not matter whichever party comes to power it is the same. No socialism or democracy in the Republic of Sri Lanka but under the emergency regulations it is a military rule. Let the justice system be impartial. Let us all pray and pray so that a miracle can happen. Pray in your own words. It does not matter whether you follow Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam or Christianity pray in your own way. Even if you do not follow any of the above religion wish good, think good and do good to others in Sri Lanka. This way we all can conquer the evil not by guns or bombs but by our deeds. Even though death and destruction for decades have burden many hearts in all the ethnic communities in Sri Lanka and the weight of this of course unbearable for Tamils, prayer can change everything. United or divided Sri Lanka is not a question at this juncture. Selling arms to the warring parties has to be stop internationally immediately. If no action is taken to stop the killings, kidnappings, disappearances in Sri Lanka then we all in this “Civilized World” are not civilized.
8. Joseph C. | December 15th, 2007 at 4:54 am
Sorry it is Dr. Dan and not Don.
9. henry sathananthan | December 16th, 2007 at 2:59 am
Prayer an God’s intervention seems the only way now.These are now stateless people no where to go. Why is the international community so silent??
10. henry sathananthan | December 16th, 2007 at 2:59 am
Prayer an God’s intervention seems the only way now.These are now stateless people no where to go. Why is the international community so silent??
11. Weerawansa | December 16th, 2007 at 2:21 pm
Simple solution: Denounce terrorism of all forms and renounce violence. Or trust in the good ole “boys” of Eelam to save you. Bettter yet, now that you are Americans, Canadians, and English, etc. ask for a small piece of land and then after a few hundred years, start a war for a “Tamil Homeland” in your new countries. But please don’t come back to Sri Lanka. As one Indian said of the Tamils in Tamil Nadu: shoo, shoo, go away and don’t bother us.
12. Dr.Eswaran | December 16th, 2007 at 3:41 pm
Well done Dr.Dan, let us all pray for the UN/International community to open their eyes and ears to see and hear the cries of the Tamils in the Northeast and around the globe. God can’t do any thing, because we cannot set one God against another. when the two races were set aginst each other in the name of God and religion, what can one do? We have faced a distructive political move from the time of independence. Instead of nation building,Sinhala polity dished out acts of discrimination, segregation,and hatred. This norm is still practiced to date.Now tell me who can help the victims of this unwanted “war on Terror”. Are we to support state terror? All commentators get your acts together and try to open IC/UN eyes and ears, and stop the blame culture. Prabaharan was two years when sinhala only act was passed and SWRD/SJVC pact was torn. four years when first riots. people can accuse him now, 2002 praised for his bravery. Time will tell who is right. let us stop unwanted chit chats, get on and force the International community to act now.
13. Kevin | December 20th, 2007 at 6:06 am
Dan
It’s people like GG and Chelenayagam who has put the Tamils in a mess and your ‘boys’ that eventlly created this horrible mess for everyone in the island.You,the bogus reffugees have done well out of this horrible mess so stay in those countries,unles you want to take the rest with you.Please don’t come back as the forces are there to finish off the devil that you have created,it is only damage control.You have created a such a mess,where we once had hournerable politicians and now we have an unaccountable bunch of rouges,created by the mess that we are in for the last 40 years.likes of you are responsible and we will have our just society once again.please don’t come to SL and add to our problems.We will be all united and come out of it together and no thanks to you.Please preach to the people in the west,as they need your guidance.
14. Thamarai Kumaran | December 22nd, 2007 at 12:31 pm
Dan says that,
“I was told that the victims were young men who were active politically, . . .or as activists during ‘Pongu Thamil’ celebrations and other political demonstrations. The killings did not appear to be random but targeted.”
These ex LTTE activists never realised that the table will turn one day and never imagined that it would turn so quickly. It was only 2 years ago the LTTE sent its men and women to Jaffna from Vanni in the name of Makkal Padai and started to kill the dissidents in the name of political work. See what is happening now. The Makkal Padai and its family members are dead bodies along the road side now.
The point is, will the expatriate young Tamils who also participate in this Pongu Thamil nonsense around the world learn a lesson from this history. What is the gurantee that the world community will not target them one day. Do not say no be’cos Karuna never even imagined that he would end up in jail in London. Even now Hitlers men are targetted around the world. They would not have dreamt that this would happen to them after 50 years!
Terrorist is always a terrorist and it does not matter where he lives and what he wears!
15. Sinniah Sivanesan | December 23rd, 2007 at 10:23 am
I read yr account of the situation in jaffna with a very heavy heart .I am reminded of Biafra situation in Nigeria and Rwanda when the world institutions like UN and Human rights groups failed miserably to save innocent lives .The very purpose and existence of these organizations is being challenged and no body cares. Prayer will fall on deaf ears of our so called followers of Buddha who preached non violence. I will be happy if the prayers will change the mind set of hard core criminals who are governing Srilanka now.God help the king ?
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