Financial Times

Families that were displaced 20 years ago are still displaced. Many are still in transitional tsunami camps,” said the Head of ECHO, David Verboom.

The aid money from the EC will go towards relocating the homeless in government-identified lands, providing basic facilities while in camp and providing emergency assistance for people that are being newly displaced from their homes.

By Dilshani Samaraweera

Aid agencies and donors brace to receive a new influx of displaced persons from the north and east of Sri Lanka in the face of escalating violence.

The European Commission (EC) announced recently that it would allocate another seven million euros to look after increasing flows of internally displaced people that are squeezing into welfare camps.

“Internally displaced persons are a rapidly expanding problem. In addition to the 400,000 base load, another 50,000 have been displaced since January 2006,” said the EC Head of Mission for Sri Lanka, Julian Wilson, at a press conference, to announce the aid package.

The total number of people that are homeless in Sri Lanka is now estimated to be in the range of around 900,000. This number is made up of around 400,000 that were displaced previously because of the conflict and another 500,000 that lost their homes to the tsunami. However, these numbers are now increasing almost daily, says the EC office, as more people are fleeing their homes in the north and the east to escape the increasing violence.

The latest EC aid package is structured to deal with any changes to the current situation, including a worsening of hostilities. A return to honouring the cease-fire agreement would see the funds being used to resettle or relocate the homeless.

If the no-war-no-peace situation continues the money will be used to look after refugees in their current locations. If, on the other hand, the situation changes to the worse, the aid line can be stretched to accommodate larger numbers needing assistance. “This worse case scenario could result in 300,000 displaced,” said a statement from the EC office.

The aid activities of the EC mainly benefit vulnerable populations in the districts of Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu, Mannar, Vavuniya and Trincomalee. Another 65,000 Sri Lankan Tamil refugees located in 103 camps in Tamil Nadu, India, are also recipients.

The Humanitarian Aid Department of the European Commission (ECHO), says that families that were displaced by the conflict over 20 years ago are still living in camps. The tsunami victims of 2004 added to the welfare camp populations.

“A lot of people are living in welfare camps. Families that were displaced 20 years ago are still displaced. Many are still in transitional tsunami camps,” said the Head of ECHO, David Verboom.

“Already there are around 50,000 new internally displaced persons. A lot of them are from Trincomalee. They were on their way to India and could not go beyond Mannar. So now they are stuck. They have nothing. They need basic things like food and cooking utensils. We are committed to assist them,” said Verboom.

The aid money will also help the government coordinate relief activities and some of the money will go towards ensuring the safety of the thousands of women and children living in camps.

“It is a very risky business living in camps. There are reports of harassment, lack of health and sanitary and other services, attempted child recruitment and trafficking by people that try to take advantage of the vulnerability of these displaced people,” said Verboom.

Aid agencies are trying to address these increasing security issues within welfare camps by stationing aid workers inside the camps.

“The aid workers are living with these people inside these camps. This is a type of protection afforded by international presence,” said Verboom.

Aid agencies are also helping the homeless obtain legal documentation like national identity cards and birth certificates and are also providing them with various types of livelihood training. However, the lack of education and opportunities for young people, is a major concern for thousands that are in welfare camps.

The European Commission also raised concerns about innocent civilians being targeted in the armed conflict, including people that have already been displaced.

“This impacts the delivery of humanitarian aid and is a growing concern for the EC who is committed to assisting these populations,” said a statement from the commissions office.