Tamil IDPs

This short note is on the recent IDP’s moved to Vavuniya, and on their early re-settlement.

The following premises on which I make my observations are based on published information available to me:

a. All IDP’s belong to the Tamil community

b. All or a majority had come to the government controlled sector to escape from the ‘incarceration’ enforced by the LTTE and/or to get away from the conflict zone

c. They were welcome arrivals to the government sector

f. At present they are unarmedAs seen in the print and electronic media they are in five camps numbered zero to four. If there are around 300,000 IDP’s in these camps, each camp would have roughly 60,000 persons, more or less. Among the IDP’s are children under 12, the aged –over 60, youth and adults both male and female. The maintenance of the IDP’s are very expensive as said by the Sarvodaya representative at a talk-show in the electronic media, and as could be deduced from the UN Secretary General soliciting international aid for that purpose

Concentrating people in restricted areas, would no doubt lead to various social, health and mental problems. I believe the government does not intend any such thing to happen. Hence the most important thing for the government would be to disperse then as early as possible.

I believe the Army must be having all the details regarding the IDP’s . It could be safely assumed that all persons in the camps are not former LTTE cadres, although they would have come under the heavy barrage of LTTE propaganda.

If the government would get the Department of Census and Statistics (DCS) to do a quick survey of those in the camps, it could have all the ‘civil’ details of the people in those camps. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) can provide the personnel to the DCS to conduct the enumeration after a short briefing as to what should be done. The personnel would have to know Tamil and English and be computer literate. The DCS would know best how to gather the information per individual and per family.

Some important details would be, apart from personal details, their place of residence, NIC number -the enumerators could check whether the given details agree with the NIC data, if such is available- their occupation/profession, whether their houses/work places are intact, as far as they know, and whether they would like to return to their own homes. Additionally, the MoD can request any information they require. Once the information is taken in tabulated form, the data can be sorted out in any form that is required for administrative purposes. That enumeration would also be a most transparent exercise..

If there are, say, 60.000 in a camp, their could be roughly 12,000 families, taking four to a family. The DCS would know how many persons/families could be enumerated in one day. Basing on that information if the MoD would give the necessary personnel to complete the enumeration in one month, the government could have the necessary ‘civil’ information within that period. It would be necessary for the enumerators to be accompanied by two persons also provided by the MoD.

When enumerating an identification number would have to be given to each member or family, and as at elections finger marking would be required to see that no one is enumerated twice. Additionally, a photograph can be taken, if possible, of the enumerated persons.

The data collected during a day, could be transmitted the same day to a designated sorting centre, so that necessary information could be sorted out for early action. The Army will of course have the confidential details necessary for security purposes, with which they could check the ‘civil’ details to decide on the action to be taken in respect of persons/families. As far as re-settlement is concerned, for instance, if there are large numbers wanting to go to village A, demining etc. of that village, and providing necessary security can get priority. Basing on that information even a schedule can be posted as to when the IDP’s could be re-settled.

Thus if early action could be taken to reduce the numbers in the camps, it would not only reduce the burden of the government in maintaining them, but also lessen the trauma of the IDP’s having to live in unfamiliar and restricted areas. After all the civilians who were victims of the LTTE should not be allowed to feel, that they had fallen from the frying-pan to the fire by crossing over to the government sector.

I believe the government would certainly have enough personnel to secure the areas to which the IDP’s would return. Further, by knowing the requirements of the IDP’s the government will have a better idea of getting about the work of re-settlement and rehabilitation in a speedy and meaningful manner. Going by the news released by the Bank of Ceylon, if they had collected over four hundred million rupees in cash and jewellry from the IDP’s it is to be expected that a majority of them would have been engaging themselves in profitable occupations/professions. Thus to get them re-settled early would be profitable to the government as well as the persons concerned.

I also understand there are various health problems in the camps, and the doctors are tackling them as best as they could. But with such large numbers concentrated in restricted areas the work of the doctors and the para-medical staff must necessarily be demanding. Further, with the rainy season to come in a few months time the health problem will certainly increase, and god forbid the dengue mosquito invading the area, with the rains. In that light whatever is to be done in resettling the IDPs, will have to be done on an urgent basis. After all most of the IDPs, as said earlier, would have voluntarily crossed over to the government sector, either to escape the LTTE terror or to escape from the war zone.

No doubt there must be various constraints, considerations and reasons, which we are unaware of, as to why the IDP’s cannot be speedily resettled. But a line can be drawn between who can be resettled early or immediately, and who would need extensive inquiry and investigation, and hence will have to remain in the camps for an extended period.

If the action suggested here has not been already taken it may be worth the while for the government to give some thought to it, in its own interest and those of the civilian IDPs

I said at the start, I am an arm-chair observer, as I have absolutely no idea about the ground situation. Hence, my line of reasoning out things, would perhaps be the same as of any other person having only the information I have. Let me add that my last visit to Jaffna was in 1961 (!), and to Mannar in 2002. During both visits, I could converse only with some people who knew English, as I knew no Tamil. Thus without my knowing Tamil, and their not knowing Sinhala or English, it was not possible to establish any personal rapport with the locals. That is the tragedy of our country. The causes of that tragedy are perpetuated by our system of school education, segregating the communities in to Sinhala and Tamil schools, and further complicating it by having different school terms for the Muslim community.