Plus
6th February 2000

Front Page|
News/Comment|
Editorial/Opinion| Business| Sports|
Sports Plus| Mirror Magazine

The Sunday Times on the Web

Line

Safe haven

Their lives have been shattered by war but now at least they have a place of their own they can call home at the Salawa Army village

By Hiranthi Fernando

Priyantha Epa, his wife and two daughters sat around the pot of milk as it boiled over in their new home last week. It was an auspicious day for moving in, and they were pleased with their house. "At last we have a place of our own. We never thought we could get something like this in our lives," Priyantha said.

Wounded by a mortar at Poonani in 1996, Priyantha has been fortunate to receive a house in the Swarna Jayanthi Ranaviru Gammanaya built by the Army Seva Vanitha Unit on Salawa Estate, Kosgama.

Priyantha's daughters Irantha and Achini have been attending school at Nawalapitiya and he now hopes to find a place for them in a school nearby so that they could live together as a family.

The Swarna Jayanthi Ranaviru Gammanaya, so named because it was opened in December 1999, the 50th anniversary of the Sri Lanka Army, is the newest of the villages set up by the Army Seva Vanitha. Fifty houses have been handed over to families of soldiers killed or disabled in action. President of the Army Seva Vanitha Unit Dilhani Weerasooriya said the houses were built with funds from the avurudu pola organised by the Army Seva Vanitha last year as well as public donations.

Twenty-five more houses are now under construction at the village. Land is available for a total of 140 houses. The Seva Vanitha ladies are now working on raising funds for the balance houses and to provide more facilities to the occupants.

Shamali with her daughterThe fifty completed houses have been given to 24 war widows and 26 disabled soldiers. Shamali Ratnayake is the wife of Upul Indika who has been missing in action after the attack on the Mullaitivu camp. Shamali has a three-year-old daughter, who has never seen her father. "I was just one month pregnant when my husband went missing. He did not even know of it," Shamali said. She received the house at Salawa in December and has settled down there happily with her little daughter.

Pushpa Kalyani lives next door with her two children, seven-year-old Shalika and four-year-old Prasadi. Her husband L.D.D. Liyanarachchi is also missing in action after the Mullaitivu attack. She acompanies her elder daughter to school in Kottawa, by bus. Pushpa returns home, cooks the mid-day meal and leaves home again at noon to pick her up. Her neighbour looks after her younger daughter while Pushpa is away. She is afraid to send her daughter alone in a van. When all the houses are occupied, Pushpa hopes to be able to arrange a school van along with the other residents.

Pushpa's other problem is the water supply. Drinking water has to be brought from a well about a quarter of a mile away. Although there are four wells in the village, the water is dirty and cannot be used for drinking or cooking, she says. "We manage because my father fills up enough water for the day," Pushpa said. Her father, who lives 12 miles away, comes daily to spend the night with his daughter and grandchild.

Finding a school nearby is a common problem for many of the war widows in the village. A widow with three daughters says her two younger children attend schools in Kotte and Nugegoda. They leave home at 6 a.m. and return at 4.30 p.m. "The little one falls asleep in the bus on the way back. When they come home they are too tired to eat or study," the mother said. Efforts to get them admitted to a school in Hanwella have been still unsuccessful despite a letter from the Ministry of Defence. The school principal now wants the Army to write direct to the school.

Sergeant Jayatilleke Banda was wounded during the Rivirasa 1 operation to enter the Fort in Jaffna. "I trampled a batta and part of my leg was blown off," he recalled. His leg was amputated and he has been fitted with a prosthesis. Jayatilleke Banda has been given light work at the Kohuwala camp of the Gemunu Regiment.

"The main problem we have is drinking water,"Jayatilleke Banda said. Although they have been given water on tap, drinking water still has to be brought from the next village. "The wells need to be cleaned," he said. "The drains too are blocked and need cleaning. When it rains water comes to the houses."

Mrs. Weerasooriya said the water problem would be sorted out when the wells are cleaned. The Seva Vanitha is also trying to equip the village with additional facilities. An abandoned building has been converted into a pleasant community hall with a stage for children's plays. A welfare shop stocked with household needs has also been opened. Space has been allocated for a gymnasium for the disabled, a Montessori school and a children's library. It is intended to train some of the wives as Montessori teachers.

Water and schooling problems apart, the new residents appear to have settled in well. A government hospital located nearby provides easy access to medical treatment. An hour's drive from Colombo and not too far from the main road, the village at Salawa will provide a safe haven for many families affected by the war.

Index Page
Front Page
News/Comments
Editorial/Opinion
Business
Sports
Sports Plus
Mirrror Magazine
Line

Return to Plus Contents

Line

Plus Archives

Front Page| News/Comment| Editorial/Opinion| Plus| Business| Sports| Sports Plus| Mirror Magazine

Please send your comments and suggestions on this web site to

The Sunday Times or to Information Laboratories (Pvt.) Ltd.

Presented on the World Wide Web by Infomation Laboratories (Pvt.) Ltd.

Hosted By LAcNet