The dispossessed

Newly arrived internally displaced Tamils preparing themselves to be registered at a camp in Kiran, on January 21, 2007. According to the U.N., 220,000 people have fled their homes between April 2006 and March 2007.-GEMUNU AMARASINGHE/AP

According to a U.N. report, the majority of a million people displaced in hostilities and natural disasters since 1990 languish in transit camps.

Newly arrived internally

On January 1, the United Nations released a report on the eight-day field visit of the Representative of the Secretary-General on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), Walter Kalin, to Sri Lanka from December 14 to 21. The report on the plight of the displaced due to the strife in the island nation and the devastating tsunami of December 26, 2004, makes Chilling reading.

According to U.N. estimates, over a million people have been displaced in Sri Lanka in different phases of hostilities and owing to natural disasters since 1990. The majority of them are still languishing in transit camps with little prospect of returning to their homes. As the Kalin report notes, in the Eastern Province alone the majority of the 220,000-odd persons who fled their homes between April 2006 and March 2007 continue to be in transitional shelters.

Despite spending eight days in the island nation, the U.N. representative could not visit areas under the control of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the north. The representative regretted that he was unable to visit Kilinochchi to discuss humanitarian and protection concerns with the LTTE. He stressed the primary responsibility of the Government of Sri Lanka in protecting and assisting the IDPs, a responsibility that includes facilitating the conditions that enable durable solutions for the displaced.

The report notes the complexity of the problem of internal displacement in Sri Lanka. It says: In addition to recent conflict-induced displacement of the past 24 months, in Puttalam for example, northern Muslims have remained in displacement for 17 years. Situations of protracted displacement also exist in Vavuniya and Jaffna, and smaller numbers of tsunami IDPs remain in the Eastern Province. In addition, fresh displacement is occurring in Mannar and other parts of the north.

The report also notes that the predominant concern among the IDPs is physical security. It says: The representative was struck by a pervasive sense of fear and uncertainty among those he spoke to. Sources of insecurity are varied, but include the following: continued incursions and attacks by the LTTE; disappearances, abductions and looting; threats and attacks upon individuals by irregular and armed groups such as the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Puligal, including infiltration of camps at night; incomplete or delayed mine-clearance; approaches used by security forces in response to security incidents, including round-ups, methods to identify suspects, and detention of individuals without proper notification to family members of the reasons for and location of the individuals detention; challenges of civilian police to respond adequately and in a timely manner to security incidents and threats against IDPs and limitations on IDPs and returnees freedom of movement based on screening and documentation of their place of origin.

Acknowledging legitimate security concerns and the responsibility of the state to address these concerns, the representative observes that whole communities felt they were under suspicion and at risk, often owing to identification of their places of origin as being in formerly LTTE-controlled areas. At times there is a tension between the security imperative and the humanitarian imperative, and the key is in finding the optimal balance which allows people to live in both dignity and safety, he observes.

Kalin says he found that significant restrictions remained and he encourages authorities to continue their efforts to restore full access to livelihoods. Some restrictions are imposed by the authorities, such as limitations on access to fields or fishing grounds. Others are related to insecurity, such as the risk of attack in or abduction from paddyfields and harassment at checkpoints.

He also notes that targeted programmes to enhance livelihood opportunities, such as the provision of seeds and tools, are not consistently coordinated at the time of return of the IDPs. Nor are livelihood opportunities provided to IDPs remaining in camps in the east. Particularly precarious is the situation of households headed by widows and other women.

Kalin feels that increased information sharing and consultation by the government with the IDPs themselves and with the international community and agencies would substantially contribute to reducing the sense of insecurity and facilitate the IDPs reintegration into the areas of return. For instance, complete and timely communication on arrests and detention, as required by international human rights standards, can reduce the fear and helplessness among the IDPs and returnees. Clear communication about options, entitlements and the process of return would allow the IDPs to make voluntary and informed choices.

At present, there is no information about housing and land in high-security zones and areas under the exclusive control of the security forces, as well as compensation for their loss or limitation. Yet relevant information is essential to enable the IDPs to exercise control of their future. Increased transparency in the form of better communication and coordination among the government and international agencies and humanitarian non-governmental groups would significantly improve the timeliness and adequacy of the humanitarian response to displacement.

Concerned about the over-300,000 persons estimated to be living in internal displacement since the 1980s, the representative stresses that allowing the displaced to lead normal lives, with decent housing and full access to livelihoods and services, on the one hand, and preservation of their right to opt for eventual return and their property rights, on the other, are not mutually exclusive. He says many government officials recognise that finding durable solutions for those in protracted situations, in particular the northern Muslims, must now be a priority for the government and the international community.

The report, however, does not make any reference to some of the knee-jerk responses of the government to the violence perpetrated by suspected cadre of the LTTE. The manner in which the government evicted 250-odd persons from the north and the east staying in various lodges of Colombo in June, and arrested 2,500 Tamils in an unprecedented overnight swoop without any reason following a parcel bomb explosion in an apparel shop on the outskirts of Colombo on November 28, best illustrates the vulnerability of an ordinary person from a minority community in the island nation.

Nor does the report take into account the 21 per cent inflation and the non-availability of essential commodities and medicines in the battle zones in the east and the north. An estimated 600,000 citizens of Jaffna peninsula continue to be cut off from the rest of the world since the government shut down A 9 highway, their only link to the rest of the island, in August 2006, citing security reasons. Prices of goods and services in Jaffna town, under the control of the military, are 100 to 300 per cent higher than elsewhere. Things could only be expected to get worse with the north becoming the theatre of war in 2008.