Hell in a Very Small Place*
[Footage of the fighting in northern Sri Lanka from ANI News]
To borrow a page from wronging rights, can you guess the worst place in the world? Hint number one - it ain't Darfur. Hint number two - there are beaches. Which would be nice, if they weren't being shelled on a constant basis.
Sri Lanka, come on down. Or, to be precise, the Vanni region in northern Sri Lanka, where an estimated 150,000 civilians are trapped in fierce fighting between the Sri Lankan military and the rebel Tamil Tigers.
And by trapped, I mean living in hell. According to Conor Foley, writing in The Guardian:
"Food and supplies have almost run out. Medical supplies are depleted. Civilians who try to leave are unable to do so, and are instead forced to shelter in rain-filled trenches, exposed to the elements, in a desperate attempt to escape the fighting."
The UN estimates that as many as 2,800 civilians have been killed and more than 7,000 wounded since January 20th.
To put that number in perspective, the AU / UN peacekeeping force in Darfur estimates a total of 496 civilians killed in Darfur during all of 2008.
So - more than five times as many civilians have been killed in Sri Lanka in the past two months than were killed in Darfur in all of last year.
To make matters even worse, many of those civilian casualties occurred in the 12 kilometer "safe zone" established by the Sri Lankan government in mid-February. (A map of the safe zone is here.)
And, as with so many conflicts, there is more than enough blame to go around.
First in the dock is the Sri Lankan military, which has a habit of indiscriminately shelling civilians. The Sri Lankan Government has also refused to allow aid agencies access to those trapped in the north.
Hewing rather closely to the tried and true strategy of deny, deny, deny and accuse, the Sri Lankan Government holds that there's really no need to worry; everything is pretty much alright.
According to the spokesman for the Sri Lankan military:
"There is no major catastrophe going on. If anything is going on like this, they should be able to prove it with the evidence. There is no evidence to say that there is large number of civilians getting killed, a large number of civilians getting injured."
(Which is fair - after all, why should tens and tens of thousands of trapped and desperate civilians count as evidence? Out of sight, out of mind.)
Besides, the spokesman argued, it's all the Tamil Tigers' fault, for forcing civilians to fight using them as human shields.
Oh, and the Sri Lankan government is herding those civilians who do escape into "Welfare Centres", from which they're not allowed to leave.
Before we rush to sympathize with the Tigers, tho, it's probably worth taking a moment to acknowledge that the Tigers are, in fact, using civilians as human shields. Or, at least, shooting civilians who try to flee.
And, as long as we're discussing skeletons in the closet - the Tigers are also forcibly conscripting civilians, including everyone from children to UN staff.
So, to sum up. Horrific humanitarian situation. Both the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil Tigers to blame.
Best to leave the last word to Conor Foley, who just returned from Sri Lanka:
"For now though, aid workers can only do what they can to try and help people, hope that the meagre aid that they are providing can actually get to those who need it most and pit hope against fear that another day does not bring news of the death of another colleague, friend or loved one."
[*Title of this post shamelessly stolen from the great Bernard Fall.]
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