Home is a classroom

How long must these tsunami-affected families in Dehiwala continue to suffer?

By Dhananjani Silva

The power of the tsunami was fleeting, but the pain it created for people is life-long. It has been one-and-a-half years since the tsunami tragedy, but there are still many people who are floundering in a sea of distress.

A classroom where these families have been living

Walk into Methodist College, Dehiwala, and you encounter yet another tsunami community. The school’s primary section; a row of about five or six classrooms has been home to these people, who were living along the Dehiwala beach since the tsunami.

The suffering they undergo is plain to see – about 30 families sheltered inside five or six classrooms. How do they manage to stay in these small class rooms? How do they sleep? Where do they cook? we ask and the answers start pouring in.

“We have been living like this for the past one-and-a-half years, but nothing has been done,” says Ramasami Lechchami, mother of two sons.

Ramasami Lechchami

“We have been facing enormous hardships, because five or six families have to rough out in one room. There are about 75 children here, and when we live packed inside a tiny room like this, if one child falls sick, the others too get affected by the same illness. How can we survive like this? How can our children live this way? Why can’t anyone help us overcome this misery?” lamented Lechchami in tears.

The Sunday Times learns that houses had, in fact, been built at Dankotuwa for these tsunami-affected families, but when they were to be relocated, there had been objections from the community in Dankotuwa and the handing over of the houses was postponed. Meanwhile their suffering continues.

A room which is barely enough for a single family is occupied by several families, who live in small corners allocated to each of them. What separates them are not walls or even hardboard partitions, but saris and long pieces of cloth. They keep their clothes, cooking utensils and other baggage in the classroom. In the small garden compound adjacent to the classrooms, small wooden shacks have been built for cooking purposes.

Shivakumara

Shivakumara, a father of two sons and two daughters, narrated their plight. “When it rains, water starts pouring into the classrooms, as the roof is damaged, and our clothes and other things get wet. We managed to cover the roof with polythene, but still the problem remains,” he went on.

Others joined him, saying that they are deprived of basic needs such as sanitary facilities and water. “People have to wait till 9 or 10 p.m. in the night sometimes to have a bath, as there is only one pipeline,” they said, while the women lamented that their grown-up daughters undergo utter humiliation, as they do not have a proper place to change their clothes. “The room is being divided with pieces of cloth, there is no privacy at all,” they chorused.

Velu Magalinga, a father of four girls and two sons, is bitter that their promised relocation to Dankotuwa, Negombo, in homes that had been built for them, has not materialised. “Nobody here has permanent jobs. None of us are rich enough to build houses on our own. Most are labourers, while some earn a living selling kapuru bola and hadunkooru,” said Velu.

Velu

“We were told that we will be getting the houses in Dankotuwa in April, and so we helped out with the construction activities too. We were so keen on going there, as we helped them make the roads, drains and instal pipelines. But finally we were informed that we would not be given those houses, due to a problem. They promised to give money instead, but every day, things are getting delayed, and this is what has been happening for the past one-and-a-half years,” said an angry Velu.

Meanwhile, the school authorities claim that the extended stay of these tsunami-affected in the Methodist College primary section is affecting the smooth running of the school.

“The primary section consisting of about 150 students had to be shifted to the school’s three-storied main building. This causes much inconvenience to the students, as we have no other building other than this to accommodate the primary section. Activities such as music and dancing lessons are now being conducted outside. Even the teachers face a lot of inconvenience, as the staff toilet is located in the primary section,” school sources said.

How long will it take for the authorities to relocate this community and bring some hope into their lives? They have suffered in miserable conditions for too long. The school too needs to resume normalcy. Is this asking for too much?