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Aspiring for a better life

by Elmo Leonard

Livelihoods in post-tsunami Sri Lanka: building back better is the title of a book published by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) of Sri Lanka. At the launch of the book (now available at all leading bookshops priced at Rs 200) IPS executive director, Dr Saman Kelegama said that 150,000 people lost their main form of income due to the tsunami.

IPS associate fellow, Paul Steel, who edited the book said that incomes are generally lower than pre-tsunami; many people were already poor before the giant wave clobbered; some people will fall through the cracks, meaning 20,000 people are estimated to be sick and injured after the tsunami. There are also those who are too traumatised to work or care for others.

Here are three 'case studies' of people hit by the Asian tsunami, yet, aspiring for a better life: Tharaimadu, six kilometres from the Batticaloa town was virtually a desert, with but a shrinking of Palymarah palm. It is less than a year since Tharaimadu became the base for 264 tsunami-hit families.

Sixty families are Tamil; the rest are a community who we call Batticaloa Burghers, but who wish to be called the Burghers of Batticaloa; "without discrimination", they said. Most of these Burghers lived at the Dutch Bar, in this eastern town. The Asian tsunami devastated the Dutch Bar while these people slept, following a late night open air musical show. The tsunami took away 146 dead, Rev Fr Rex Ockersz said, in Colombo.

On the first anniversary of the tsunami, a monument in commemoration of the tsunami dead was built at the Dutch Bar.

The 264 families of Tamils and Burghers are housed in temporary shelters of 250 square feet costing Rs 450,000 ($4500) each. The roof and four walls of the houses are made of zinc. Here, the temperature in the shade hovers over 35 degrees Celsius, during this warm part of the year. In Tharaimadu common toilets are the norm.

When it rains, Tharaimadu is under water. It is better to sleep in storm water than to be taken away by tsunami water, they say.

St Benedict's College, Colombo, OBU informed that two students from Batticaloa, who lost one or both parents to the tsunami could be admitted to that college. Two parents wrote to the Bens OBU, Hony general secretary, Ravi Irugalbandara. Parent, Terrel Joseph de Zilwa said: "My family was severely affected by the tsunami.

We are now living at a temporary hut at Thiramadu. After his fearful experience on the morning of December 26 my son (Sylvester de Zilwa) feels that he must be away from Batticaloa for some time. He has passed year nine at St Ignatius School, Dutch Bar, Batticaloa. The school has been completely destroyed. He is 13 years old.

"I have been informed t hat the OBU would help my son to study at St Benedict's College Colombo with hostel accommodation. The next step of submitting the school leaving certificate and other documents can be produced if admission is assured.

"Hence, I would be very thankful if you could please obtain admission for my son to study at the above college from January 2006 and support him to complete his advanced level examination at Benedict's College."

Another parent, Harrington Outschoorn, wrote: "I lost my wife and daughter in the tsunami disaster and the only surviving souls are two sons. The eldest is at St Michael's College (national) Batticaloa and sat his `O' level examination. The second son is the one in view for admission to St Benedict's College to grade 10.

"His aptitude in all the fields of the educational career are very progressive, except for his worries over the tsunami impact.

These two boys are back in square one and yet study in Batticaloa. The reason being that the letters their fathers wrote to the Hony general secretary of the Ben's OBU arrived late.

If you are an Old Ben or a member of the Burgher community please help by sponsoring one of these boys. Please write to Hony General secretary, OBU, Ravi Irugalbandara, C/o St Benedict's College, Colombo 13.

The hostel fee is Rs 3000 and school fees, Rs 300 and for advanced level Rs 400 per month. The sponsorship is for the duration of the boy's education in St Benedict's. If there are more than two sponsors, Irugalbandara says that he will appeal to the director of St Benedict's College, Rev Bro Granville Perera to take in more boys from among the Burghers in Batticaloa who lost a parent in the tsunami.

These boys study in the Tamil medium, being the only medium of instruction possible in Batticaloa; LTTE leader Velupillai Prabakaran deemed long ago that the Sinhala Maha Vidyalaya, Batticaloa must remain closed.

Most of the Burghers of Batticaloa go the way of their forefathers, who were craftsmen brought over here from Europe to repair ships, guns and other craft. Today, they are carpenters, welders, mechanics, tailors, drivers and the like. The older generation speak Craole Portuguese.

Over 100 years ago some of the community branched out to Akkaraipattu, 70 kilometres south of Batticaloa, in the Amparai district, finding work there. There were 26 families of Burghers of Akkaraipattu before the tsunami struck, destroying 26 cement and mortar houses. Thirteen died, three boys, seven girls, a 30 year old woman and a young man.

We visited 20 families living in temporary houses of around 150 square feet each. Mrs Agnes Hendrick 55, a mother of five, looked much older according to our standards. The women wear cheap cotton dresses falling well below their knees.

It is hard to come by an Eastern Burgher under 50 years of age who speaks English; Tamil is their first language. We had to be content with faulty English sign language and little Sinhala. Here, their names were, De Lima, Andrado, Sellar, Barthelot, Outschoorn, Wetterbrown, Razario and Balthraszar. Their leader is Desmond Barthelot, 9, Mannamthottam, Pottuvil Road, Akkaraipattu 9.

In search of work again, about 25 years ago, the Burghers of the East shifted to Kalmunai, 35 kilometres from Batticaloa town. "Where there are Muslims, there is work," they said.

They lived in a village called Pandriuppu and all of their 29 houses were damaged and are now replaced. Two died. The names we came across were, Fabian, Joseph, Rita and Anthony Barthelot, Rozairo and Balthazaar.

Some considerate people gifted them bicycles and sewing machines. Sewing machines are particularly important for the womenfolk of the Eastern Burghers, for they work as tailors at home or in tailor shops. They also use mortar and pestle to pound rice into flour as we did in our homes 50 years ago. The flour is used to turn out hoppers, string hoppers and pittu for fast food outlets.

Prominent among the Burghers of Kalmunai is Rev Fr Joseph de Koning, earlier Vicar General for the Batticaloa Diocese. Their leader is Antony Keil, 6 Old Post Office Road, Kalmunai.

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