Better prospects ahead for resettling Northerners

by Dhaneshi YATAWARA

The Government's objective is to resettle every Internally Displaced Person (IDP) by January 31.

The Giants Tank

Opening of the Anti Malaria campaign in Kilinochchi

Soldiers of Sri Lanka Army saved the lives of 283,000 civilians (91,000 families) who were brutally held by LTTE terrorists from mid November, 2008 to mid May 2009. It was always the soldier who was at the first receiving point of the escaping civilians.

They even gave their own food to these civilians. The soldiers cared for the sick and the weak amidst their prime responsibility of causing maximum attrition to the enemy.

"The Government's objective is to give a better life to the IDPs when they resettle. It is not just about settling them in the environment they used to have. It would be an area where specific developments take place uplifting the lifestyles of the people," said Chandra Fernando, Presidential Advisor on the North and East development.

A special discussion, one of a series, was held recently at the Colombo sub office of the Northern Province Governor's Secretariat on new plans of the Northern Development drive presided by Presidential Advisor Chandra Fernando and several senior officers of the Northern Province.

A major resettlement process is taking place in the Northern Province following the successful completion of resettlement in the Eastern Province. Within the Eastern Province nearly 200,000 people were resettled in their villages.

The Northern Province is returning to normality. One cannot expect this to happen overnight. With the dedicated service of the Presidential Task Force for Northern Development under the direction of its Chairman Senior Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa M.P., programs are being implemented according to a plan.

Senior Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa's personal inspection of each and every project and program visiting the sites is the catalysis of the entire process.

The Government has no intention to keep the people in Welfare Centres for a minute longer than necessary. Resettling nearly 150,000 people within nearly two months is a remarkable sign of success under a proper plan and guidance.

Starts with resettlement

Inaugurating cultivation in Mallavi in the Kilinochchi district

"The highest tribute that can be paid to the war heroes is to provide the IDPs with basic facilities, to resettle them in their original native places and to restore their livelihoods. Already Security Forces have taken steps to provide security to cleared areas and the Government led by the President has drawn its attention to the security of the people, security of the North and of the country" said the Chairman of the Task Force Basil Rajapaksa, at the first meeting of the Task Force.

The Northern Spring mega development drive started off with resettlement and its initial plans. "The Government's policy was to start the resettlement process with the people who were displaced first. This was the reason why we started resettlement in Mannar as the war in the Northern front started in Silavathura area," Fernando said.

According to the 1981 census and statistics 1,203,109 people were living in the entire Northern Province of which 92.46% were of the Tamil ethnicity, 4.51% were Muslim people and 2.82 were Sinhalese and another 0.22% comprised other ethnicities.

The population of the Province was heavily affected by the war. Several hundred thousand Tamil people who were living in the North have migrated mostly to the Western world. In the resettlement process priority is given to the most essential services to support the people to re-start their normal lifestyles. Northerners depended on Agriculture for centuries and even today it is the prominent source of income of these people. Jaffna district where Jaffna town, the capital of the province is located has different agricultural practices than the Vanni. Basically the farmers of the Jaffna peninsula use underground aquifers fed by 'Andiya' wells to irrigate their land while Vanni farmers depend on irrigation tanks fed by rivers. Of the crops that were produced in Jaffna, paddy, chillie and red onion comprised a major part of the harvest. Fruits such as grapes, mango and banana were the favourite of people even from other parts of the country. Jaffna grapes and karthacolomban mangoes had a very high demand in the markets islandwide and still continue to do so.

Providing school bags to students of the Adampan School by Resettlement Minister Rishad Bathiudeen and Northern Province Governor G. A. Chandrasiri

Villagers of Kiranchi in Kilinochchi District - waiting to return home on the resettling day

The newly renovated Kilinochchi Hospital, Adampan

Inaugurating cultivation in Mallavi in the Kilinochchi district

Vast lands of paddy fields around the Giants Tank in Mannar is being de-mined and main irrigation systems are getting repaired and reconstructed. With such developments taking place the fertile lands of the Mannar 'rice bowl' will be free and safe for the farmers to cultivate, enhancing agriculture's contribution towards the national economy. "It is not just resettling people. They will be supported to start livelihood activities and economically strengthened," Northern Province Governor Maj.Gen. G.A. Chandrasiri said.

The first phase of the resettlement took place in Mannar, resettling nearly 2,000 people in Saveriyapuram in the Musali DS division in April 2009, even before the conflict ended.

The main challenge facing the Government is de-mining the vast lands of paddy fields, forests, agricultural plots, towns, villages, schools, hospitals, Government offices etc. Almost the entire province needs Security Clearance certificates from the Sri Lanka Army.

The Government provides transport to all resettling people and according to officials each family is given a package of dry rations such as rice, sugar, macaroni, green peas and wheat flour along with vegetable oil and vegetables.

New set up

Major General Chandrasiri was sworn in as the Governor, Northern Province on July 12, 2009 by President Mahinda Rajapaksa. The post is unique since he will be in charge of the only province that is yet to have a fully fledged, i.e. elected, Provincial Council. Whereas the post of Governor is largely ceremonial, in this instance, Maj. Gen. Chandrasiri will wield full powers since he will be operating in a province without a council and therefore sans ministers overseeing key subjects.

There are certain sectors in the North that could easily be developed with private sector funding, which would aid the province as well as the investors.

At the initial stages the Northern Spring development drive was started with the aspiration of completing at least 80 per cent of the resettlement programme by its dead line - January 31, 2010. With the steady progress and dedicated service of the officials resettlement will be completed 100 percent by its deadline.

The Rice bowl will harvest its rich cultivation in a few months and by next season the entire area will be totally cultivated with rich paddy lands as almost all the original settlers are now back in their homes in the Mannar district.

The next step of the Government would be to bring home the Muslim people who were displaced earlier. This was revealed by Senior Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa M.P. during a recent visit he made to Mannar.

Rebuilding a land from scratch is vital since this part of the country and its people were longing to be back on the track for many years. Yet it could be the most complicated, sensitive issue facing the Government. At the end of the day a Government should be able to meet the aspirations of public and that would be an everlasting success for any Government.