More Places Not To Be - Sri Lanka

by Michael Bear · 2008-11-30 16:51:00 UTC
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[Humanitarian crisis in northern Sri Lanka - Footage from Amnesty International]

Friday's post, about the aid worker killed in Sri Lanka, made me realize that I haven't written nearly enough about the humanitarian situation there.  Especially as recent fighting between the Sri Lankan government and the rebel Tamil Tigers in northern Sri Lanka has caused over 300,000 civilians to flee their homes.

(To get a sense of how the Sri Lankan forces have pushed the rebels back over the last few years, see this series of maps.)

According to a recent report by Amnesty International: "Tens of thousands of families are now enduring the monsoon season with limited food, shelter, water or sanitation."

Humanitarian agencies have at best "restricted access" to most of northern Sri Lanka - and in particular the Wanni (Vanni) region, where the current fighting is centered.  (Click here to see a map showing humanitarian access as of November 20th.)

As the Amnesty International report explains:

"In September, the Sri Lankan government ordered the United Nations (UN) and non-governmental aid workers to leave the region. The government then assumed total responsibility for ensuring the needs of the civilian population affected by the hostilities are met.

As yet, despite assurances that it has the situation under control, there is evidence to suggest that the Government of Sri Lanka lacks the capacity to provide the required humanitarian relief to displaced people and the civilian population in the Wanni."

For a graph showing the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Sri Lanka over the past two and a a half years, see here.

Michael Bear
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